


All This & a Box of Chocolates, Too

by psykotisk



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Crimson Flower Route, F/M, alternate take on FE version of valentines day, canon byleth is too dry for me sorryyyy, i just want to see them happy ok????, ooc byleth - now with more personality!, will update tags depending how next chapter goes lol
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-10
Updated: 2020-04-14
Packaged: 2021-03-01 21:28:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 23,500
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23653873
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/psykotisk/pseuds/psykotisk
Summary: It's the day when Byleth is going to confess her love to one of her students by gifting him with a delightful box of chocolates.But, fate, as always, seems to have different plans, which results in the poor professor getting lost in the woods after an embarrassing moment with her students.Is there any way she can possibly get her day back on track & convince the fiendish man she loves to perhaps give her a chance?
Relationships: My Unit | Byleth/Hubert von Vestra
Comments: 3
Kudos: 23





	1. Dark Chocolate Coffee Flavored Truffles

Byleth had never run so fast in her life.

She had burst through the mob that had assembled around her in the dining hall after Hilda had ever so _kindly_ spread the news of catching their beloved professor purchasing a box of chocolates in the marketplace sometime earlier in the day - after which, a mass of students raced to her, all screaming out questions in regards to their professor's secret crush and pestering her for more answers than she would ever willingly share - and she sped off without once looking back. She had not registered who had surrounded her and whether or not a certain student was there as a part of the interested group, but she did not care.

Only one thing mattered now, and it was that she had to get away. 

Clutching the box of chocolates protectively to her chest, she ran and ran, not even being aware of where her feet were leading her. She felt a hand grip onto her shoulder at one point, but she pulled away and easily slipped out from their hold. She was practically flying and, whether it was due to adrenaline or embarrassment alone, she did not even register the impact of her feet on the ground as she continued onward.

No one could stop her now.

Her breath was growing desperate and ragged as she flew through the marketplace and beyond the monastery's walls, yet she could not stop. She heard some distantly recognizable voices - including those belonging to a few of the guards and perhaps some of those were her students as well - who were shouting her name in concern as she plunged into the darkness of the nearby forest, but she ignored them all and still ran on. She knew it was stupid to be doing this, but her flushed cheeks and racing thoughts only urged her to run faster and faster and even _faster_ yet as twigs and branches tangled in her navy hair and twisted at her clothes. She had by now lost the rest of her students and any guards that would have tried to give chase, but there was no way for her to outrun her own emotions.

Still, she would try just the same to shake them off any way she could.

Her vision began dimming and black dots gripped at the edge of her line of sight as she bore through the underbrush of the wilds. Her breath felt incredibly hot in her throat and painfully dry in her chest as she looked ahead on the path she was treading, knowing she couldn't keep this up much longer. Panting and weak, she entered into a tangle of old and decaying trees, where dry low hanging branches scraped at her face and threatened to rip her hair straight out of her scalp. She cried out in pain as one such branch ripped by her forehead, then, ducking her head low, she pushed on, pain notwithstanding, still determined to make it to whatever destination she was heading towards.

Once she had made it out of the dead patch of trees, it was only too late that she noticed a toppled old log that was laying nicely on its side before her path and a dry rotting hole caught a hold onto one of her feet as she attempted to leap over it. She yelped out as her foot twisted against the wooden obstacle and she was sent sprawling out onto the cool forest floor.

Byleth screamed as she slammed into the dirt and grass, reflexively reaching out with her arms to lessen her impact with the earth. But, as her forearms collided with the ground, the box of chocolates fell out of her loosened grip and she practically landed with her full weight on top of it.

Despite the sudden terrible soreness in her forearms and the throbbing in her ankle, Byleth dizzily pulled herself upright in a panic, desperately fetching the chocolates from underneath her. With a subdued cry peeling from her throat, she looked over the brutalized box, which had been squashed something terrible by her landing on it. A strangled sob escaped her lips as she clutched it to her chest, tears prickling at her eyes and threatening to overflow her vision as her disappointment grew.

She had been so excited and nervous all day long so that she could confess her true feelings to the man she absolutely adored - the same man that she should absolutely, completely and totally not be interested in and whom had absolutely, completely and totally no interest in her - and now…

She had even thought up a sort of speech she would have said to him, while bearing herself open for him for the taking, and she had thought up every possible response she would need to provide, whether in acceptance of his love in return or understanding that her feelings were not returned, as depending on his reaction. She was ready, she was excited and everything was going to be perfect, except…

She had ruined everything. It was all for naught.

_It was over._

The box of chocolates was more or less destroyed. Though the blood red ribbon was still tying the box together and kept the contents inside of it from escaping in her fall, it had been mostly flattened on one side and its once beautifully arranged ruby and silver ribbons on the top of it had the life totally crushed out of them - any form they once held was long since gone. A pit opened in her gut as she caught a whiff of the rich dark chocolate and the scent of the candies flavorful fillings escaping from the crumpled in box, which could only mean that the chocolates had burst open after she had landed squarely on top of it.

Byleth slowly attempted to stand as tears streamed down her face and tiny droplets of blood rained down from her eyebrow. Her breathing hitched in her chest once she put her body weight on her injured foot and her ankle screamed out in pain. The girl fell downwards at once with a defeated howl. Feeling utterly depressed and brokenhearted, she gave up the urge to continue further. She curled into fetal position with her bruised arms gripping possessively around the ruined box of chocolates and she sobbed long and hard as the evening slowly gave away to a cold, sorrowful night.

* * *

Byleth had been drifting in and out of consciousness for about an hour or two, after which her tears had finally subsided and her mind began to clear. Sorrow still gripped tightly onto her throat and she felt like such a fool for having run away in the manner that she had, but after chasing away the worst of her worries and pain, now she was more focused on a deep rooted sense of fear that began to creep up her spine once she had finally come to grips with the situation she had gotten herself stuck in. 

She was lost in the middle of a densely packed woods as the black night sky began to swallow up the last embers of the sunset hanging over the horizon. Winter was nearing and, as such, a stinging cold began to whisper around her form as the darkness set in and, even as she wrapped her cloak around herself, the chill soaked into her bones, leaving her trembling and her teeth chattering together. In her desperation, Byleth tested her ankle again, only to discover that putting her full weight on her injured leg left her in excruciating pain. She could manage a step or two before her ankle gave way, where she then fell downwards and curled up under her cloak at the base of a large willow, distraught to be stuck here in this position for the night.

Of course, she had been through rough patches in her life and always escaped unfazed, but there was something dreadfully different about tonight - the girl had practically given up her will to continue on after all this had gone and happened.

She lay there, feeling no less than dead to the world and she prepared to accept her untimely fate - that is, until a cold terror bit into her soul.

_Something was drawing near her._

She could barely make out the distant sound of footsteps crunching on dried leaves, but she was positive that someone or something was approaching her and heading roughly in her direction. With her life potentially being threatened by an outside source, her battle-honed skills came roaring back to life. Byleth swiftly sat upright and pressed herself flat against the base of the tree, and the adrenaline coursing through her body thankfully made the worst of her pain subside for the moment.

Carefully drawing her dagger from its holster, she primed herself and waited until she could make out the crisp, warm glow of a lantern in the near distance and it was growing ever closer. She stayed low and glimpsed around the trunk of the tree, blinking in confusion as she made sense out of the figure standing off just a few meters away.

_It couldn't be…_

"Hubert?" Byleth called out quietly, not at all believing her sight at who had come to her rescue.

The figure turned her direction and lashed out dramatically towards her with a sword that was crackling with dark energy. Byleth squeaked and drew backwards as the sharp edge of the blade gleamed in the dim light and the dark mage's familiar face slowly came into view. His hair was disheveled, even more so than usual, and he was wearing a long, black overcoat, which somehow made him appear even more ominous and threatening than usual - which was _really_ saying something -, but it _was_ him. A jolt of panic went through her chest at the sword aimed her way, but the nervous ringing in her ears died down almost at once after she made out his perplexed expression staring down at her.

For all his cruel prior threats on her life, it was obvious he wasn't here to kill her tonight. It was alright - she was safe. Or, at least, she was safe enough with him here, for the time being.

Hubert carefully shone the lantern in the direction of her voice and Byleth winced as she was momentarily blinded, casually waving her dager-less hand at him while he looked her over.

"Professor?" His harsh tone sounded out in confusion as he locked onto her, lying pathetically on the ground as she was. He chuckled before lowering his sword and returning it to his side. "So, this is where you ran off to… What in the good name of the Adrestian Empire are you doing all the way out here?"

Byleth breathed out in relief while he slowly crept towards her, almost as if he was afraid of her springing a trap on him.

"I’m obviously waiting for death to come claim me or for someone to come rescue me... whichever arrives sooner, if that’s not clear enough," she sighed wearily. Resigned to her fate of being located by such an unlikely ally, she put her dagger away and reclined back against the tree. Though he was a terrifying force to be reckoned with, she believed - perhaps it was only because she was so utterly foolish and that she so _desperately_ wanted to believe that there was some semblance of good in him - that she was safe enough being in his company.

Hubert hummed and stalked around the willow to face her, lantern held high over her head and uncertainty reading clearly over his stern gaze as he leered down at her, his impressive height never seeming so intimidating as it did now as she laid practically beside his feet. He smirked while shadows danced around his sharp features, giving the man a rather predatory look about him as he stared unblinkingly into her own eyes. "Is that so?"

"Yes, I promise you. That’s the sad, pathetic truth," Byleth nodded and looked away from him, her cheeks taking on an unwelcome warmth after her eyes locked with his. "I loathe to admit it, but I injured my ankle and I can’t walk. I’ve been stuck here for at least an hour or so."

A smirk pulled at the edge of his lips as he bent down to her level. "Ah, so is _that_ what happened to you after your little show in the dining hall?"

 _Oh, no - so, he_ **_had_ ** _been there!_

"Hm? Anything more to say, _dear_ professor?" Byleth's face grew hot as he leaned in toward her, pressing the lantern toward her face, as if it alone could extract the truth from her.

"Do you mean, is there anything more to the story, that is, besides that I had been verbally accosted by the majority of the officers academy's students earlier today? Where I then panicked and I ran off and eventually tripped on this goddess forsake log and injured myself? Because no! That’s it! That’s exactly what happened!" Aggravation heated her face so that her blush was conveniently hidden from his sight. "This isn't some clever scheme of mine to finally lure you out here in the cold and take your miserable life - I can assure you of that!"

He glared at her in distrust, his visible eye unblinking and severe as ever. "What was this all about, anyway?"

"The Feast of Saints," Byleth quietly breathed out, her gut sinking as he grimaced at her response.

"What?" He asked with a chuckle. "Really now, professor? You expect me to believe _that_? What, were you actually planning on doing something today to celebrate this ridiculous holiday?"

"Yes!" Byleth practically reared at him. Hubert cried out in shock and fell backwards, taking the annoying lantern away from her face as he dropped onto his bum on the earth before her. "And don't laugh! This isn’t funny!"

He rubbed at his behind with a moan. "No, it's not anymore."

"Really though, Hubert," Byleth sighed again and fell backwards against the tree as the dark mage pulled himself into a crouching position. "This was going to be a big ordeal for me today. And I… I’m afraid that I ruined it entirely."

He looked at her with feigned disgust. "Oh, professor, don't tell me that _you_ were really going to play into this stupid holiday, too?" He gazed over at her, something akin to disappointment reading in his eyes. "I actually thought you were better than this."

"Well. I guess I’m not!" She looked down her nose at him, trying not to let the remorseless churning of her stomach get the best of her. Crossing her arms sternly over her ample chest, she huffed, "And, apparently, I’m not who you think I am, but don’t you dare blame that on _me_. Your misapprehensions are not my fault!"

Hubert looked to her side and he eyed the damaged box of sweets, his gaze faltering as he returned to focus on her.

"Yes, you see? I had bought chocolates and everything," Byleth was breathing heavily, and even though tears were threatening to stream down her cheeks, she held onto her composure and continued on. "After the feast, I was going to give them to someone and - and today, finally, for one time in my life! -, I was hoping to feel like a normal person! I’ve spent my whole life living an odd and temperamental life as a mercenary and I’ve never once - not once! - been able to celebrate any one of these charming holidays you all are so accustomed and tired of!

"Now, the feast has been stripped from me yet again and I’ve been forced to lie out here in the unmerciful cold, because of my own stupid wrongdoings. I destroyed everything for myself and I can only assume that this is now my punishment - that I'll never get to experience a normal life! But you know what? You have no right to judge me for wanting to take part in the festivities, Hubert! So, don't you dare say another word on the subject!"

She panted heavily as he sheepishly tried to hold her leer, but he broke away and sighed dejectedly.

"Professor, I…" his head dipped low as he carefully examined the upturned sod beneath his boots. "I'm sorry. I truly am. This day doesn't bode well with me and I… I shouldn't take my anger on it out on you."

"I - what?" Byleth rubbed at her reddening eyes and sniffed deeply as her emotions slowly calmed. "What do you mean by that?"

"It's growing late," he nodded solemnly to himself as he changed the focus of the conversation. He stood up from his crouching position, dusting himself off and still refusing to look at her in the eyes. "We should be on our way before it gets any colder or the others begin to fear that I've died on this silly hunt for you."

She reached out to him and took the cuff of his sleeve in her hand. "Wait, what did you mean by that, before? Please, tell me what’s wrong."

"Professor," he growled dangerously. "Let’s go, _now_. " Byleth clenched her eyes tightly in pain and pulled herself onto her feet. Her arms trembled and her body swayed weakly as she moved, but she remained standing. He gazed down at her in surprise as she suddenly latched onto his other arm. "No, talk to me. What did you mean by all of that?"

"Byleth… you're shivering and… you're _bleeding_ ," Hubert's voice was faint as he sorrowfully glanced over her features and narrowed in on her forehead.

His gloved hand brushed over the sore wound above her eye and she fought to stifle a cry from escaping her lips, too unused to his touch or hearing her born name on his lips to bear. He gently settled the palm of his hand over her injury and a warmth began blooming over her wound, which was so comforting and so soothing that Byleth's eyelids fluttered shut and she gave a great sigh of relief. All at once, he quickly tore his hand away from her, as if he was burned by the contact with her flesh alone, and she winced as a dull pain returned in the wake of his touch. "That'll ll need tending to. It'll be a nasty scar if it doesn't heal properly."

"Yes, and? How does that concern you?" She snapped back, trying to ignore the sluggish weakness growing in her arms and the anguish pulling harshly on the corner of her mind as she continued to stand on her aching feet, putting the last of her strength into clinging onto the man's sleeves.

"It doesn't," he admitted quietly. "But, I would hate to see your face marred by such an imperfection."

_Had he really just said that?!_

"I… Sorry, what?" She asked in disbelief, her jaw hanging open at his comment. "Hubert, what do you mean by _that_?"

He seemed to ignore her and, instead, one arm at a time, he gently shook her hands off of him and then put the lantern in Byleth's outstretched arms. She wobbled on her feet and watched in total confusion as he removed his outer coat and offered it to her. "It's rather cold tonight. Take it."

Byleth held the warm lantern closer to her torso, completely blindsided by this all too friendly side of the dark mage. "What? But, wait, what about you? I don’t -"

"Oh, hush and worry about yourself, for a change - I'm perfectly fine without it." Hubert dramatically rolled his eye before stepping forward and draping his large coat over Byleth's shoulders. She squeaked as he pulled it around her, taken by surprise at the sheer weight of the garment alone. He smirked down at her and reclaimed his lantern as she moaned dreamily while the fur-lined warmth of the coat embraced her chilled form and his familiar scent of parchment and coffee pooled delectably in her nose. "How's that, professor?"

"Wow, this is…" She started with a giggle, her eyes practically rolling back into her head in delight.

"Warm? I'd hope so," he grinned casually at her. "I worked up quite a fever in this thing while I was out here searching for you. I've warmed up just fine - truth be told, it's you I'm worried about now."

"Hubert…" Byleth pulled the collar of the jacket up, trying to hide the flush that was quickly spreading to her cheeks, not at all prepared to see such a different and positively charming side of him. "Have you've really been looking for me all this time?"

"Yes," he relented. "I tried to stop you before leaving the monastery's grounds, but you're quite the fast one when you get going and you shook off my grip like it was nothing! I had no chance at keeping up with your unholy pace, but you're lucky that, despite what others might say, I'm at least kind enough that I wouldn't consider using magic to slow you down and catch you before you escaped into the woods." He chuckled before completing his thought, "After all, I would've hated to have been the cause for blasting you into a million little, tiny, insignificant pieces, you know?"

Despite his dark joke, Byleth's brain abruptly stalled.

_Had he really gone out of his way and done all of that… for her?_

She had remembered hearing people calling after her, but was it really possible that Hubert had been one of the people that chased after her? The thought alone was suddenly maddening. Byleth bit down onto her lip as a warmth blazed in her chest.

_Was it possible that he… ?_

"Oh no, Hubert," Byleth became dimly aware that she was falling towards the man as she spoke, but she had no strength left in her reserves to fight against gravity and she fell limply into his chest. She felt his hands awkwardly take ahold of her upper arms, as if he wasn't sure how to support the small girl without breaking her in two. "You… you really did that all… for me? Wait - did you come alone? And, oh no! You haven’t been searching for me all this time, have you? Don’t tell me that you’re missing the feast all because of me!"

"Relax," he urged her, gently squeezing her biceps. "It's really not that big of a deal. Lady Edelgard and the others wanted to start a search for you, but I assured them that I would have you back in no time at all and I - being the terrible man I am - forced them to go back to partaking in the celebrations while I went on my own after you.

"That is to say, that I didn’t think that they needed to ruin their fun while I alone could prowl around these woods until I tracked you down. After all, I know you and your habits better than the rest of the lot, of course. No one was better suited for the task of locating you and hauling you back to the monastery. Plus, I feel that I personally had to make certain you were safe, professor."

"Well, I... why? Why were you willing to rescue me in the first place?" She questioned softly, not sure if she had tripped and fallen into a different reality where she ran face to face with a bafflingly charming and gentlemanly Hubert or if she instead had just been so unbelievably blind to any of his acts of kindness before.

"Well, I -" he faltered, suddenly glancing over her as she stared adoringly up at him. A wild and flustered look took over his face and he cleared his throat and averted his eyes from her before continuing. "I care about you a good deal, Byleth."

Her energy level soared as he spoke her name again and she carefully drew herself away from him, his arms still clutching onto her.

"Hubert, you… you don't like me. You’ve threatened my life before - _on multiple accounts!_ \- and you usually act like I'm nothing but a potential traitor towards you and Edelgard, though I've proven time and time again that I'm on your side!

"And even though I've been nothing short of professional and welcoming toward you since I've gotten here, you've purposely lashed out at me, saying the harshest and cruelest things to me or otherwise avoiding me like a plague. You've never once been kind directly towards me, so why start today? What changed? What made you come and help me today?" She groaned in frustration and prodded at his chest as her legs trembled uselessly beneath her. "I don’t understand you!"

"It’s simple, professor, the feast means nothing to me. But you, as Lady Edelgard and my teacher, are much more important to me - ergo, your safety came as a first priority. Other than that… I'm sorry. I can be a… 'difficult, silly man,' as Lady Edelgard says. I apologize that I've made you feel… this way," he responded, his tone never once changing, though a soft gleam caught in his eyes as he spoke.

Byleth looked nervously at the chocolates on the forest floor before looking back to him, his green gaze never once straying from her own. "How do you feel then, if I was wrong? How do you _truly_ feel about me?"

Even in the dim lighting, she could see a rare blush taking to his face, whether it was from him being put on the spot or… from some _other_ reason, she didn't know - but she was willing to hazard a guess.

"It doesn't matter - there's more important things we need to deal with now, anyway. Speaking of, it’s about time we start heading back," he spoke calmly as he placed the lantern back into Byleth's arms, which clearly caught her by surprise.

Before she could even respond, he casually stepped closely to her and scooped her up, with his one arm latching between her knees and the other wrapping around her waist, holding her close against his body in a bridal style hold. Byleth yelped as he gently adjusted her in his arms and she gripped tightly around his neck with one arm while her other held steady onto the lantern as she froze in place, totally in shock by the change of events that had just taken place.

"What are you doing?!" She whispered harshly, his face being in much closer proximity to her than she was prepared for. She glanced around suddenly in a panic, as if she was afraid of anyone else seeing or hearing them in this telling position.

"Oh, professor, relax," he laughed airily as he caught a glimpse of her wild expression. "I'm going to take you back to the monastery, find a healer to help you and that is all. You are not fit to walk, so I have to carry you back there in some fashion, unless you had an alternate plan? If you do, please feel free to share with the class."

Byleth nodded uneasily, ignoring his prod at her new profession as she practically folded in on herself, beyond unsure of how to act while held in such an intimate position. "Alright, I suppose this is ok, just this once, I mean."

"I can't promise you the same," Hubert grinned devilishly at her and she froze, unsure of whether or not he was joking with her this time. He turned to head back the direction he had originally come from, but before he could take one step, Byleth cried out, halting their progress immediately.

" _Wait_!!" He winced as her voice rang sharply in his ear.

"What? Already? What could it possibly be?!" He snarled as she rocked back and forth in his arms, gesturing towards the forest floor.

"That! The chocolates! Please, I can’t - I have to have them! _Please_!"

"Honestly…" Hubert sighed and stooped low enough so that his professor could reach out with frantic hands to grab the damaged box of candy and she clutched it against her chest. "Has this all truly been about some silly crush and this _sad_ , deformed box of chocolates?" He sneered at the crinkled box that his professor held tightly in her arms underneath the lantern.

"Well…" Byleth started, oddly beginning to relax and feel comfortable in his hold - as, bizarrely enough, she always did while alone in his company, even as he threatened her life and tried to get a rise out of her in any way he could, but to no avail.

Honestly, he was such a pain and he had always treated her so oddly and regularly analyzed her so fiercely, as if she was a specimen under his scope, rather than a living being and his own teacher. She had sadly believed he had always despised her and was only watching her, searching for weaknesses, though she had hoped foolishly all the while that she might one day be proven otherwise.

Yet, now here she was with a thousand racing thoughts going through her mind, suddenly wondering if there could be something more between them.

And though Hubert has always been an enigma to her since they first met, he had truly taken her by surprise in a number of ways this one night alone - including even venturing out into the woods to search for her in the first place. Now, as she considered her luck in him coming to rescue her, a wave of impressed thought crossed her mind as she considered how he had so successfully tracked her down and even how easily he had scooped her up in his arms, as well.

For being a magic user, he was a lot stronger and in better shape than she had expected him to be - not that she ever thought about him like that.

_Of course not._

_That would be ludicrous._

She had always simply assumed he was decently frail or even sickly, as based off of his disastrous appearance alone, but still - and for whatever reason - she had to admit that she had spent a fair amount of time in the past considering his appearance alone.

Sometimes, she wondered what he would look like after removing his tunic and sitting around in a loose white shirt rather than his stuffy officer's academy uniform or just how handsome he would look if his hair was pulled back and away from dramatically covering his eye - not that his current hairstyle wasn't rather appealing in and of itself. Her chest ached as she considered her luck at being in his arms and how she could so easily toss the lantern to the forest floor, grab him by the face and push the bangs from covering his eye off to the side, so she could finally see the dark mage in full.

Her stomach flipped as she imagined pulling him closer and closer still, until their lips met one another in a frenzy of harsh kisses and she jolted, suddenly realizing what was going through her mind as she was still being held in the same man's arms.

Try as she may, she couldn't steer her mind away from him and her throat tightened remorselessly as more of these sort of thoughts began pelting her mind, setting a warm tightness in her gut.

_Maybe it wasn't so ludicrous, after all._

Perhaps, she had thought about him like this many, many times before.

But, why was it that, even as he treated her so coldly, she wanted nothing more than to get closer to him and to be friendlier with him, rather than break apart and never see each other again? Why did she long to reach out to him and hold onto him or to link her arm in his or join him, hand in hand, on his nightly walks around the monastery grounds? She cursed under her breath as she unwillingly admitted the truth.

Despite how mean he had been to her in the past and how he had never been outwardly kind to her besides the few times he had come to her aid in battle and in her current situation, she had always been quite taken with him.

But, she had valid reasons for being so struck with him, she assured herself, no longer willing to deny the attraction she felt towards him. After all, Hubert was incredibly loyal and endlessly supportive to his team. He may have been quite a dark soul, who preferred working in the shadows rather than alongside with his peers, but it was just how he was. He didn't lie or try to cover up his true nature and he embraced his flaws and all of his creepy, unsettling facets of himself, which was rather admirable, in her mind.

Then in class, though he tended not to speak up or answer questions during lectures, he would pester her with his thoughts for hours after class had dismissed every few days, debating endlessly with her on any topic that would cross their minds. She never had admitted it before, but his papers were extraordinary well written and he never failed to make her consider tactics and other such options she never would have conceived of alone. On the battlefield, his magical skills were unsurpassed and he could topple foes without breaking a sweat. On the flipside, he had proved to be a skilled tactician and, though Edelgard was clearly the leader of the Black Eagles, without Hubert's stolid guidance, Byleth doubted their team would have been as successful as they had been all this time.

But still, why was she suddenly thinking this way, at all? He hadn't, in fact, denied that he hated her or admitted that he felt otherwise towards her, but she had such an odd wave of hope singing through her head that maybe she was wrong.

There _had_ to be something between them, she was unerringly sure of that.

"I suppose," she answered, after a long pause. “After all, that’s what the Feast of Saints is about, if I’m not mistaken?"

Hubert shrugged wearily as he carefully made his way over the same toppled tree that hand landed Byleth here in the first place. "I believe so. You see, I'm no expert on this holiday, but the general idea is that families are to come together and bridge the physical distances between one another on this one day, each year. Then, they are to have a feast in honor of the four saints to give thanks for all that they have, be it toward their good health, grand fortune, or whatever else that may entail.

"Everyone brings food to gift to one another during the feast and, somehow, it later devolved into a whole event where young, gullible simpletons admit their love to one another after partaking in the feast by giving sweets and flowers to each other… It's supposed to be in some fashion of giving thanks for one another, but that's really the extent of my knowledge."

"What, have you never actually celebrated the feast yourself? You sound like you were reading a segment from a textbook, for Sothis' sake!" Byleth quipped and the smile on Hubert's lips slowly faded away.

"I have not." He ducked underneath an overhanging branch and Byleth watched his features shift, his gaze becoming empty and angry, yet his tone of voice remained unchanged. "My father forbade me from ever taken part in anything related to this day."

Byleth gaped at him. "But, I was told that practically _everyone_ celebrated the feast!"

Hubert glanced down at her and scoffed, a small smile alighting on his lips. "As if you're one to talk."

She nodded, conceding his point. "Alright, that _is_ fair. But, still, I’m rather surprised by you, Hubie."

"Ugh," he groaned. "Professor, you're not going to start calling me _that_ , too, now, are you?"

Byleth nestled her head against his shoulder, feeling strangely content in his presence. "I dunno. It’s far too cute a name for you, but I still think you could pull it off."

Hubert coughed gruffly. "No thanks, I'd rather be scary, old Hubert than cute, little 'Hubie' any day."

"Ohh, but that's not fair! All your classmates can call you that - I want to have a nickname to use for you as well!" Byleth pouted.

"Well, if you can think up anything less degrading than 'Hubie,' I might be up for it," he said, trying hard not to let his professor catch him looking down at her as she fell deep into thought.

Hubert fought through a tangle of old trees that had scraped Byleth up pretty badly on her run into the forest. He carefully pushed on, putting himself at risk of injury and doing everything he could to protect the woman in his arms from being lashed at again. As he made it through the dead patch of trees, Byleth suddenly screamed out, halting the dark mage immediately.

" _What_? What is it?" He barked, a cold chill gripping tight onto his throat, his hands crackling with dark energy as he prepared to defend them both from harm.

"I've got it!" She looked at him, she delight radiating in her eyes. “Another nickname for you!"

Hubert groaned as his magical energy fizzled out before setting off again. "Goddess, I was afraid something had happened to you! There was no need to frighten me like that!"

"Sorry," she shamefully buried herself deeper in his arms and as she did so, his hands clenched tighter onto her and it was Hubert, this time, who fought diligently to kill a blush that was burning to life over his cheeks.

"No, no, it's alright ‐ really," he smiled and she was caught surprised by how charming he looked with such an honest grin on his face. "Go ahead, what did you think up?"

"How about 'Hubes?'" She tried, cautiously. "It's not very cutesy or over the top and… it sounds like the word 'cube.' Uh, sorry, it… well, I suppose it's really not a very good one, after all," she chuckled uneasily in her embarrassment.

But, to her surprise, Hubert broke out in a fit of laughter.

"No, actually, I quite like that," he grinning at her, setting the butterflies in Byleth's stomach vibrating on full throttle. "It's simple and nothing over the top. I think I like it, that is, if only when you say it."

"Good! I may just have to start calling you that from now on," Byleth grinned and looked up to Hubert, who was focusing entirely away from the gaze of his professor as they drew out of the last patch of woods, but she was content to notice he was still smirking just the same.

"Hey," Byleth called out. "I just remembered about what you said before about this holiday… Does that mean that you’ve never received chocolates from anyone for this feast either?"

He sighed in annoyance. "Professor... I thought we were finally done with this conversation. Can we _please_ let this rest?"

"No such luck," she shook her head firmly. "Now, tell me, have you ever received chocolates for the Feast of the Saints?"

"Professor, please," he groaned. "Do us both a favor and forget about it."

"No!" Byleth swung about in his arms so that her face was very nearly pressed up against his, and the mage froze up instantaneously. She felt his breath hitch in his chest as she glared down into his eye, which was dancing furiously between her stern gaze and her pursed lips. The question she was about to pose died in her throat as she looked over his face, in turn.

Maybe it was the moonlight casting a spell on them or maybe it was the way he was holding her in his arms, but whatever it was, something dangerous came to the forefront of her mind.

_Go on… you should kiss him!_

"I - I can’t just let this go." Her hollow chest swelled as she considered doing something absolutely and completely idiotic, yet, despite her nerves, her face moved forward on it's own accord and her eyelids began to flutter shut. The whole world had practically silenced around them as he stood there, clutching so tightly onto her frame.

"Please, Hubert," her lips moved ever so deliberately against his as she spoke. "Will you tell me the truth?"

A strangled sound came out of Hubert's throat as she remained there, a few millimeters away from closing in on him and pressing a kiss fully against his lips.

"F - _Fine_ ! No! I have never - not once, not _ever_! - been gifted chocolates or anything of the sort on this holiday or any other, for that matter," he reeled back and pulled his face away from her, his chest heaving and his face practically glowing red from her touch as he stormed forward.

"Huh? Really?" A blush stole over Byleth's face as she realized what she had come so dangerously close to having done, yet she hated to admit it, she only felt remorse at not being able to commit to fully kissing him. "I would’ve figured you as the sort who would receive tons of fan letters and gifts from legions of girls! You’re so mysterious and brooding and polite and charming and -"

" _Ha ha_ , very funny, professor, but that would be a hard no, so just… stop teasing me," he was walking faster now that they had reached the monastery's gates. The guards watched them pass by with wide eyes as the two bickered on. "Professor, please lay off, I know I'm not attractive. There's no need to rub salt in that long since opened wound. You're really not being funny."

"But, Hubert! I _am_ serious - really! I mean, I… well, I, uh… Oh, at the very least, I would’ve expected that you and Edelgard -"

"There is nothing between Lady Edelgard and myself," he answered dryly. "I am her loyal servant and she is my number one duty, my first and foremost thought when I wake up and then my final thought as I go to rest at night. I honor her above everything else and owe my very life to her and, plainly speaking, that is all."

Byleth blinked in shock, only too focused on the man before her to notice the large groups of people that were still out and about celebrating the feast… some of whom were watching the pair rather intently as Hubert carried Byleth by them, with her being all bundled up in his arms.

"Well, you have to do better than that, because that wasn’t very convincing. 

"Oh, stop it - it doesn't have to be convincing - _it's the truth_ !" A sort of growl was coming from the back of his throat. "But, please, could you just stop with this line of questioning? We could speak about anything else or - oh, _here's a thought_ \- walk in silence! Whatever you'd like to pick, I will follow suit, because I'm done playing along with your little game."

"But, Hubert - wait!" Byleth became all too aware that they were quickly approaching her room. "There’s something I need to tell you - something that you need to understand -"

"No , dear professor, _you_ need to understand this conversation is done . "

A desperate panic ripped through her chest. Byleth cried out and kicked her uninjured leg uselessly as Hubert unhaltingly marched her across the grounds. It was totally maddening just how strong he was compared to her in this state - he wasn't slowing at all.

She groaned, too aware that she was running out of time to turn what had only just become a very terrible situation around.

"Wait! Stop! Hubert, please, wait!" She squeaked desperately, tossing in his arms and trying to catch his steely gaze to distract him from charging onward.

"No," he huffed, easily ignoring her pleas but much less easily containing the girl as she jostled about. She groaned as he climbed a staircase, two steps at a time, all too aware of how close their journey was to a close. "And would you please stop fussing around so much!? It's as if you're trying to make this harder than it needs to be!"

"No, but I -!" He was now very nearly at her door. If she had managed to screw this up so royally, there was a very good chance that she might never get another shot at this, at admitting her true feelings toward this terrible but, apparently, incredibly sensitive man. "Please wait! Just give me one moment!"

"No such chance, professor," he hissed under his breath. "Not at all. We are going to your room, I will find you a healer and then we can thankfully part ways for the night."

"But, _Hubert_!"

"No. This conversation is over, thank you very much."

"But - but, _STOP_!!" She shrieked at once.

He halted just before her door and Byleth caught her breath, wondering if she had finally gotten through to him. The moment his hand outstretched to push the door open, her gut lurched, making her immediately ill.

" _No_!" She howled, grasping onto the doorjamb for dear life as he attempted to step inside, where he instead received a hearty dose of whiplash as she fought against his hold in the process.

" _Professor_!" Hubert glared at her, his nostrils flaring as he strained to pull on her and break her grip away from the doorframe. "Would you stop this? You're acting like a child!"

"No!" Byleth groaned as she dug her blunt nails into the wooden door frame, intent upon not allowing Hubert to win this battle so easily. "I won't stop, unless you hear me out!"

Hubert hissed in annoyance and before he responded, he glanced briefly out of the doorway and caught sight of a number of intrigued students watching in awe from the nearby courtyard as he and his professor struggled at the entrance to her room. His ears reddened at once realizing the large audience they now held and how racy the image of him carrying - or now _forcing_ \- Byleth into her own bedroom must have appeared to an outside watcher. Especially with the fact that she was shrieking at him to stop as he was attempting to force her into the room.

This did not paint a very good picture of him, in the slightest.

 _Oh, the things people would be saying tomorrow_...

"Ok, fine! Fine, fine, _fine_ ! Be quiet and I'll give you one last moment of my time, alright?!" Knowing she had gotten her way, Byleth happily released her grip from the doorway and Hubert hastily pulled her inside with an angry grunt.

Though he had, of course, never been in the professor's private quarters before, he was familiar with the generic set up the housing arrangements followed. After closing the door behind him, which was made _infinitely_ easier without Byleth fussing about like before, Hubert sidestepped around her desk and a few piles of books set on the floor, quickly approaching her bed. He laid her gently down onto the mattress and as he pulled his arms out from beneath her, a wild thought took Byleth by surprise.

He hovered over her prone body for a few moments, simply gazing down at his professor and she was again overpowered by the urge to toss the lantern away onto the floor and to take a hold of Hubert's tunic and drag him down on top of her. Now more than ever, she wanted to kiss him and embrace him and feel his body against hers before he walked away and she lost her chance to admit her feelings toward him - but her desire to bring him any closer to her died at once in her head as her student began yelling at her.

"Professor, _what in Fódlan is wrong with you_ ?! Do you know how many people saw you throwing your little hissy fit back there? And what will they think of me coming into your room unattended like this? Do you have any idea how badly this will affect both of us for days to come? Did you even think at all before acting so _foolishly_?!"

Byleth sighed and set the lantern off onto the counter top at the head of her bed. "Hubert, I don't give a wyvern's right wing over what others may think. Truthfully? Right now, I only care about what _you_ think of me."

"Professor, how do you not care?! Well, I -" he started though his voice dropped away once her words sunk in. "What… what did you say?” 

Byleth sat upright and casually dusted off the mangled box of chocolates with the sleeve of his coat that she still wore. "I know you’re mad at me - and you have every right to be, as infuriating as I am - but… I’m sorry. Please, save your rants at me for tomorrow, if you don't mind? Today has been long and miserable enough for me."

He sighed, a heavily strain was present on his voice as he spoke. "Fine. For now, I'll let you be."

"Wait," she chirped. "At least, before you leave and find a healer, I have one last thing to ask of you, if you don’t mind?"

"Oh?" He looked over her with an empty stare, no true malice or anger simmering behind his gaze like she would have feared. "Certainly. Go on, I suppose."

"I'm in no shape to go chasing anyone around the monastery, so," her stomach lurched and acid rose sharply in her throat as she looked to the package resting in her hands. She glanced back to him and squirmed to the side of the bed, making room for him to sit beside her. "And, yes, I know they’re no longer very pretty, but I need help with taking care of these chocolates before the night is over."

"Who are they for?" He asked rather gently, after sitting down a respectable distance besides Byleth on her bed. "I can help deliver them for you, if that would help alleviate your stress?" A sickly smile crept over his lips as he considered an alternative option. "Or, if you have a more _malicious_ intent utilizing these sweets, I could always help and _poison_ them for you instead, professor."

"No! No - there's no need for _that_ !" Byleth cried out, grabbing protectively around the box and shaking her head vigorously to get the point across.

"Alright, very well," Hubert chuckled while her motions calmed and he raised an eyebrow at her as she sighed before adjusting the box in her hands.

"But, yes," she offered it to the man sitting beside her. "I’ll gladly take you up on your offer to help me get this to its intended recipient."

Hubert shrugged and gingerly plucked the box from her open and awaiting hands. "Alright, so who is it for? I mean, you never said who, but it is the night of the feast, so I can only assume they're for a special someone, perhaps? Ferdinand? Sylvain? Dorothea?" Byleth smirked as he stuck out his tongue in disgust. "I must ask, because my curiosity is piqued, but who is the lucky, _lucky_ person?"

"Well, maybe you better see for yourself," Byleth bashfully faced away from him, pushing some wild strands of hair behind her ears as he continued observing her. "Go ahead - he, uh, his name is written on the tag."

Hubert turned the box around in his grip until he found the tag, which was hidden in the mess of the once artfully arranged ribbons. With his gloved hands, he skillfully untangled it from the colorful tangle set around the box. "Ah! 'He,' you say? Well then, let's see…"

Byleth looked up through her wild brush of bangs just in time to watch a number of emotions phase through Hubert's gaunt face, following each other in rapid succession. First, his eye went wide, then his cheeks grew rosy, next his mouth opened, as if he were about to scream, and his final expression settled on something comparable to a perfect mixture of sorrow and disbelief.

His reaction was unexpected, to say the very least.

"Is… is this some sort of trick? Are you playing a joke on me?" He suddenly glared down at her, his hands trembling ever so slightly as their eyes locked together. 

"What? No! Not at all!" She cried out and leaned over to him, a horror settling in her chest as his reaction followed absolutely nothing she could have prepared for. "Hubert, didn’t you see who it was for?"

"I can read just fine, professor," he sneered.

"Then, what’s gotten into you? I don’t understand! Tell me! What does it say?" Byleth had gotten up in his face, refusing to back down even as his breathing grew faster and more ragged.

"Oh, as if you didn't know!" He laughed cruelly and gestured aggressively at the tag as she winced away from him. "Look, right here - it's written 'to Hubert, _love_ Byleth.'"

" _And_?!" Byleth shouted over the uncanny peel of laughter that burst from his mouth. "What is so funny about that?"

"The fact that you are trying to turn this around to me , for whatever harebrained reason! To mock _me_ , insult me, or just to make me feel worse than I do about myself! Oh, thank you so much for _that_ , professor!"

" _What_ !? Hubert, no! It’s for _you_ ! This has all been for you! This whole miserable ordeal today was about you and because of you, you - you _absolute dastard_!!"

"I… you... what?" He abruptly stopped laughing as a sickened expression took hold over him.

Byleth's eyes were blurring over in tears at his cruel and over the top reaction. Just seeing how he was treating this whole affair had her skin feeling like it had been doused in oil and lit on fire. "The _gift_ is for _you_ , " she hissed as she shook the box in front of his face.

A flush crawled up Hubert's neck as he considered her stubborn scowl. "Professor, you're… you're joking, right?"

Byleth groaned and reclined backwards on her bed. She glared at the box in her hands before tossing it carelessly on the ground and turning away from him and toward the wall with an ungrateful flop, vanishing into his heavy coat as she did so.

"You know what? Never mind, never mind! Forget this whole thing ever happened. Thank you for your help and please have a very good night. We never have to speak about again!"

"But - no, wait!" Hubert leaned down and picked up the box with unsteady hands. He glanced back over her, desperation gripping at his throat as he considered attempting to physically turn her back around to face him, but his good manners refused to let him touch her like this. He set the box down on her bed and sighed deeply. "Please, professor, talk to me - tell me what this means!"

"' _What this means_?'" Byleth was seething as she sat up and leered into his soul. "Hubert, class isn't in session right now. Can't you figure it out by your lonesome or do I have to spell it out for you?"

He gulped and sheepishly looked down at the box in his hands. "No, I… understand what you mean to tell me, but I want to hear the truth from you. I… well, I don't believe what you're insinuating from all of this."

"What? In that I'm insinuating that I _like_ you?" She laughed dismissively. "You really can't grasp that?"

"No," he whispered, pulling his arms close by his sides and away from her touch - like he was mentally and physically blocking himself off from her. "I understand what you were implying, I simply can't believe that it's the truth."

"But," she began, confused. "It is.

"Hubert, you're handsome and fascinating and loyal to your comrades beyond anything I've ever seen before. You can certainly be frightening, but your powers are incredible and you've saved my life countless times on the battlefield before!... even though you've threatened me, just the same. You… you have become very dear to me. I truly enjoy the little time we spend together and I care about you deeply. So, yes! It is the truth! I have grown a crush on you that I can't seem to shake, but I'm happy with it. I bought you this special box of chocolates for today because I wanted to ask you today if there would be any chance that you might be willing to give me a chance at your side, as well?"

He looked up to her, despair filling to the brim over in his icy gaze. "I - I don't understand why you would want to do so with _me_ of all people, professor. There are far better suitors to meet your needs or even -"

"Hubert, I just said... Are you ok? What’s wrong? Didn’t you hear what me?" Byleth reached out to him and placed her hand on his upper arm, and he jolted upright as if her touch had harmed him. "Hubes, it's you I'm fond of! I want to get closer to you, not further away so, goddess above, why are you being so difficult about this? If you don’t return my feelings, you only need to say so and I won’t pressure you any further, I promise!"

"I have never," he began cautiously. "ever been treated or spoken to in this manner, so now I find it… rather difficult to respond to you, if that makes any sense."

"And that’s ok." Byleth sat upright and took his hand. He stared blankly at her as she gently pulled him back to sitting at her side. "Like I said, if you’re not comfortable in returning my romantic feelings, I will bid you no ill will. If you need time to process your own thoughts before responding, I’m more than happy to wait for you. But, whatever you choose to do, just know that I will always care deeply for you, Hubert."

He nodded slowly. "I, uhh… thank you, professor. Though I have obviously made you feel otherwise, I must admit that I care for you, as well. But," he sighed deeply, running a hand through his unruly hair. "I do believe that I will take you up on that offer of waiting before I give you my true response to your feelings - though I appreciate you being so earnest in this matter, regardless, I don't think I'm ready to…"

"I understand," she smiled reassuringly at him. "We can talk about it later when you're up for it, how does that sound?"

He nodded slowly, his hand gingerly holding onto her own "Just lovely, thank you… Byleth."

A shock erupted in her chest as she looked him over, realizing only now how exhausted she was feeling.

"Well, after all this undue torture I've put you through, you don't need to hang around here anymore. You're free to go," Byleth smiled at him, but the sorrowful look trapped in her eyes told another story. "But, allow me to say one last thing: thank you for hearing me out and saving me from that forest. I know it probably sounds really cliche, but after today, you’re sort of my hero."

His heart leapt violently into his throat. "Right," his voice cracked and he turned away from her in embarrassment, totally unsure of how to respond. "Now, about that healer, though…"

"Oh, I’d almost forgotten about my own foot!" Byleth called out in surprise. "Hubert, if you could please track Linhardt or Mercedes down for me, then I won’t harass you until you’re ready to speak to me. I promise that’s the last I’ll ask you for now!"

Hubert grinned sheepishly and began rolling up his sleeves. "Well, actually, I had another thought about that…"

"Which is…?" She began, obviously confused.

"Watch and see," he smirked as a bright, warm glow grew from his palms.

"Is _that_ …?" Byleth gasped in surprise as his hands pulsed with a white light and he carefully clenched his hands around her aching ankle. "Have you learned how to heal?"

"Yes," he chuckled back in response. "I've been listening to you, professor, and you are right. We don’t have enough people who can perform healing tactics, so - though I despise learning about faith - I've studied through enough tomes that I can now do such basic tasks of healing minor wounds and basic sprains and the like.”

Byleth moaned appreciatively as the pain began to seep away and the weariness in her bones began to abate. “Hubert, I must admit, I’m very impressed that you were willing to try something different on my account!”

“Of course,” Hubert nodded sagely as he lifted his hands away from her leg and glanced warily at her face. “You do have a good thought every once and awhile, professor.”

She beamed at him. “Was that a joke, Hubes? I don’t think I have ever heard you even attempt humor before!”

“There’s a first time for everything,” the dark mage smirked in her direction. "But, I must say, at the very least, thank you for an interesting evening, professor. Though I believe it's time that I bid you a fond farewell - and ah, I almost forgot! You can return my overcoat in the morning when you are feeling better."

Byleth cuddled into the jacket, breathing his scent in deeply. "Thanks! You're too kind."

He smiled sorrowfully at her. "I'm sorry today didn't work out how you had planned, but after everything that happened, you deserve some well needed rest. But... do you mind me asking something so selfish? I wish to think this all over and I'd like to ask if, while I do so... can I take the chocolates with me? That is, if it's not too much of a trouble for you?”

Byleth took his hand in her own and nodded to him. “They may not be very pretty, but they should probably still taste just fine - they’re all yours!”

“Thank you - and oh! One final thing.” Hubert rose to his full height before bending over and he reached out suddenly to her face. Byleth cried out in surprise as his gloved hand rested on top of her forehead and that same pleasant warmth from before began to pulse against her sore wound.

He slowly peeled his hand away from her healed skin, but not before carefully brushing her wild bangs out of her eyes and behind her ear. He stared down at her, his eyes filled with an odd softness, making a bizarre ache pierce through Byleth’s chest. He leaned down even closer toward her, pressing a chaste kiss against her forehead.

“Sleep well, professor,” he murmured, his lips grazed her skin as he spoke, sending prickles awash over her flesh. He stood upright and slowly released her hand from his grip, a sad, longing sort of look trapped in his gaze. “I will go rejoin the festivities and tell the others that you are alright.”

Byleth sighed dejectedly. “Of course, but Hubert? Before you go, I want to… Can you promise me something?”

“Well, that depends,” the dark mage looked down at her, a smile cracking over his usually stern visage as he took the box of chocolates in his arms. “What exactly may that be?”

“Though I know you’re not that fond of this holiday and since I lost my chance at being able to partake in the feast this year, can you promise that you’ll celebrate with me next year? I don’t mean that we have to go through this chocolate themed nightmare again, but I think we both deserve a chance at experiencing the joys of the feast together," she smiled fondly at him as she caught his warm gaze.

"I would like nothing more than to do that." Hubert bowed deeply at her with his hand held toward his heart over the box. “That is a promise that I'm happy to agree to. Until tomorrow, good night, professor. Sleep well.” 

“Thank you, Hubes, and good night,” she grinned foolishly at her student before wrapping the long coat around her form and curling under her blankets. As Hubert made his way out of her room, a million of thrilling thoughts raced through her mind and she began to consider the endless possibilities of what might be with one thought echoing loudest of all in her mind:

_Next year would not be able to come soon enough._


	2. Somniphobia

It had been four days since the green-haired wonder awoke from her five year long slumber and had promptly stumbled back into her former students’ lives at Garegg Mach monastery.

Edelgard had been the first to tackle her old professor and pull her into a hug so deep that it was a shock to everyone that Byleth even made it out of the Emperor’s arms alive, only to be followed by an onslaught of tears ( _Bernadetta, of course_ ), boisterous cheers ( _Caspar, featuring Linhardt yelling at him to quiet down, which only made Caspar raise his voice even_ **_louder_ ** _yet_ ) and many, many, _many_ more hugs ( _Dorothea and Ferdinand practically were fighting to see who could hold her longer_ ) as Byleth greeted each of her old students, marvelling at how they had all grown into such fine young adults, in turn. After Petra scooped her professor into a fierce bear hug and swung the mercenary around in a few tight circles, Byleth was left reeling as she was set back on her feet and she more or less fell into Hubert’s chest, grabbing wildly onto his dark coat to keep herself from toppling over.

The dark mage hastily wrapped his arms around her to keep the mercenary from pulling his elegant overcoat right off of his torso and he passed her his signature glare while she held onto him, still struggling to regain her balance.

“Hi, Hubes,” she murmured quietly, her dizzy eyes barely able to focus on him, especially with such an angry look plastered over his handsome face. “You look… _good_. That hairstyle really works for you.”

“Well, professor, I -,” he began in a huff, as if he was about to go and scold her, but his voice broke away into silence as she ducked her head, afraid of incurring his wrath. Instead, he pulled the girl up on her feet and dragged her closer to him. Byleth squeaked in surprise as he held her tightly in his arms, with one hand gripping desperately onto her back and the other tangling in her wild mess of mint green hair, in what could only be described as a rather intimate embrace. “It’s _so_ great to see you again.”

She felt her chest swell in an overabundance of emotions she dared not name and, without consideration to the thoughts of their onlookers, she threw her arms around him and buried her face in the crook of his neck, breathing in his familiar, welcoming scent and praying that this moment would never end.

Of course, it had to eventually - and sooner than she would've hoped for, too.

Though she had wanted to cling onto him indefinitely longer, Hubert was aware that his companions were watching them ever so carefully and a few of them - namely Dorothea and Caspar - were snickering loudly at Hubert’s odd show of emotion, all the while. He reluctantly broke their embrace short and coldly dropped his hands away from her, as if he suddenly realized what he was doing and wanted no part in it. The girl casually followed suit, slowly drawing away from him, though her hands lingered by his - for just a moment -, where she could have sworn he had tried to catch her fingers between his own. After regaining a respectable distance from one another, she nervously glanced up at the dark mage’s face, wondering if whether in the five years she missed, Hubert had managed to widen his scope of emotions at all, or if this show of kindness had all been in her imagination.

If she had a beating heart, it would have stilled in that moment - she was totally blindsided by the most charming smile she had ever seen in her life and it was even more so baffling as it was etched so perfectly on - _of all people!_ \- his face.

_Was it possible that this was actually reality?!_

Her pulse skidded to a stop and her stomach flipped as she glanced away from him, but she couldn't hold herself back from grinning like an absolute fool after catching him looking at her with such a quality of warmth in his eyes. She couldn’t be certain if it was just that he had matured in the time she had been gone and he had evolved into something of a true gentleman or if there was some infinitesimally small possibility that he had time to think over their adventure during the Feast of the Saints - which seemed merely like a matter of days ago to the young girl, whereas it had been quite a number of years since Hubert had rescued her from accepting her untimely fate in the woods outside of the monastery that cold night - and perhaps he might've been showing he was now ready and willing to return her affections.

She gulped nervously and turned back to face the rest of their team. This wasn’t something she could worry about now when there was so much more she had missed and needed to catch up with the rest of their tightly knit group. But, once she could finally get a chance to steal him away, she fully intended upon pressing her luck and questioning him to find out where they stood.

_Goddess above, there was simply no reason he should have grown and become so devilishly handsome like that! It just wasn’t fair!!_

Their old professor fought to keep her attention spread evenly across the rest of the group as she was surrounded by them, but even as she was able to force herself away from him and she managed to escape that magnetic pull they seemed to have on each other, Hubert found him utterly drawn to her, as well. He watched in pure amusement as she kept stealing glances back at him, almost as if she was encouraging the dark mage to join in everyone's excited jabbering, yet he forced himself to stay back on the sidelines and give everyone else time to enjoy her attention.

It had been a good many years that the former Black Eagle students had been without the guidance of their professor and, even though they had all grown - some of whom were now even _older_ than Byleth, herself - they were eager to get her back in the loop and ask for her assistance with their millions of troubles that had sprung up since her vanishing act long ago. There were not many people whom they all trusted and respected so strongly as their former professor, and it was clear to see that everyone was especially happy now that she had finally returned to them.

The question of why she returned passed no one's lips, only exclamations of joy and proclamations of cheer had a place here. The questions would have to wait until later.

Hubert too had his own fair share of troubles that he wanted to speak about with Byleth, all of which were far more personal than he would have willingly brought up around the others, but he knew now wasn’t the time nor the place. His companions deserved her doting attention far more than he ever could, even though he felt so childish to hope there might still be something lingering between them, all this time later. He stood off a fair distance away from the hubbub and leaned against a wall as he watched his comrades lighting up in a manner they hadn’t in all too long, but now, they happily did so as they were again in the presence of the energetic mercenary, whom they all feared had died years ago.

As the conversation bore on with no end in sight, Edelgard commanded that they all move to the dining hall to celebrate their professor’s return with drinks and food aplenty and that they would continue their conversation over food. Byleth was swiftly forced into the middle of the group as they marched off on their way with Hubert hanging slightly behind the lot, far more content to listen in on their discussions rather than intrude or interrupt them himself.

* * *

Once a change of clothes had been provided to the poor mercenary and the celebratory meal had been set, they drank, feasted, and joined together with unmatched vigor to enjoy the return of a precious ghost from their past. It was a joyous time in a rather bleak period of conquest and war but, as in anything in life, the rarity such great times made everyone appreciate the good events that much more. Each one of them intended upon enjoying this evening to its fullest extent, before the evening ran out and the nightmares of war would come crawling back and destroy only more of their lives.

Hubert took a deep swig of his drink after Edelgard raised a cheer - directed at no one else but their beloved professor, of course - and he looked over his friends, truly not being able to recall a time when everyone was in such good spirits. He set his glass down and gazed past Byleth’s wild hair and out of the widow at the setting sun, realizing - though his feeble heart was pounding excitedly through his form and eagerly encouraging him to catch the mercenary's attention - it would be cruel and selfish for him to try and monopolize Byleth's thoughts for himself anytime soon.

His team deserved her love and kindness more than he - an unholy abomination that was born of shadow and blood - ever would. Thinking on his friends, he decided then that he would not seek her out or attempt to steal her attention away from the others for their benefit alone. He had held himself together relatively well since Byleth stepped out of their lives, but others - Edelgard, specifically - hadn’t fared so well. True, they all needed their professor now more than ever in their own odd ways and it was his duty to step back and watch them all turn back into their energetic, youthful selves with Byleth guiding them onto a path of success as they charged ever forwards in this neverending insanity.

Hubert downed a good amount of his drink, suddenly feeling his stomach take a dizzying drop as he realized this would mean that he would be purposefully staying away and out of contact with the green-haired mercenary. He gazed at her from the side of his vision, cursing himself for being so taken with her and for his heart causing small tremors to shake through his body once he caught sight of her brilliant smile - he wasn't sure he had the strength to keep himself away from her now that she was only an arm’s reach away from him.

After all, though he had been better off than the others because he was a loner by nature, Hubert had struggled miserably on his own with deciphering his maddening emotions since she departed from their team. He had long since dreamed of the day when he could wrap his old professor in his arms and tell her that his heart belonged to her and her alone, if she would have him - his Emperor be damned - and they could drift off together into whatever happy ending followed them merrily along.

But, of course, now that Byleth was back, he wouldn't dare do something so stupid.

Hubert had devoted his life to serving Edelgard and, though he had already fulfilled many years of duty, he would never conceive of the possibility of ever leaving the Emperor's side, even though his silly daydreams would have had him doing so in an instant once the odd, green-haired girl came skipping back into his life. The mage glared down into the amber liquid he was busy swirling around in his glass, and he sighed, knowing what he had to do, even though his disloyal heart was pleading at him to follow in another direction entirely.

But, it was a time of war, endless strife and horrific loss - it simply wouldn't be fair if he alone achieved happiness by her side if everyone else continued suffering without Byleth there to help them out. He stared at his unfinished meal and considered how much each of his teammates had struggled since the war first blazed to life and he set his resolve again.

It would be so much better for his friends if he didn’t try to get involved in anything regarding their professor.

But, he thought impishly as Caspar filled his glass to the rim, a slight buzz building at the back of his fatigued brain, if they would live to celebrate another Feast of the Saints, perhaps then he might be willing to pursue the girl, just as he had promised her he would five years prior, so long as everyone else was taken care of first. Yet, for now, he was simply content to be here in her presence, drinking in her fearless smiles and committing each one of her high, tinkling laughs to memory.

He had prayed - yes, he had gone so far as to even beg the useless goddess for help - feverishly since that miserable battle where they lost her, that Byleth would be returned to them and only now had the impossible had come true. He had to be content with the little he would allow himself, such as by being in the near vicinity of her, he decided at once and he silently reprimanded himself for again considering pursuing anything more with her.

_It was wrong._

_It was too much to ask._

He swore to himself then that he would never ask for anything more now that she was here - he could certainly manage that, he supposed, meekly trying to avoid her emerald gaze.

All at once, he was forced out of his thoughts as Edelgard had cracked some sort of a joke besides him and the table erupted into honest peels of laughter - that is, for everyone except Byleth and himself. His stomach twisted as she reached across the table and took up his empty fist in her smaller hands. She reassuringly squeezed onto him before letting go and folding her hands down on her lap as the others caught their breath, having been none the wiser that anything had taken place between the two of them.

Hubert chose to fight away an uncontrollable chill that raced down his spine and his hair standing on end by chugging away at his full glass, until it was nothing but a sheer reminder of itself in the form of foam left on his upper lip. 

_It was ok,_ he assured himself again, catching Byleth’s adoring gaze as he wiped at his mouth with his handkerchief. _I’m happy just knowing she’s with us again and I need nothing more._

Caspar slapped the mage's back harshly, knocking the wind out of his lungs before the loud knight began filling Hubert’s glass for a third time, praising the dark mage for being something of "a real man, for a change.”

Byleth’s eyes continued to stray from her discussion with Edelgard and, at some point, she simply locked onto him, instantly setting an unbearable heat stoking away in his gut as she passed him an all too innocent and pure smile. Hubert ignored the quiet apologies from the idiot to his left for causing him a rough coughing fit and he again raised his glass to his lips and took a deep gulp, reminding himself, _once more,_ not to give up on his resolve.

_I’m happy that she’s back with us, I need nothing more. I’m happy she’s back, I need nothing more. I’m happy she’s back, I need noth -_

Suddenly, a pair of stocking covered legs wrapped themselves around one of his own and Hubert just about choked on the traitorous liquid he had swallowed while his brain spun about uselessly, only vaguely aware that the damn girl was playing _footsie_ with him.

Everyone at the table turned to him in alarm, checking to make sure he was alright. The mage slammed his glass down and coughed out something that sounded close enough to an affirmation that he was not, in fact, in the process of leaving the mortal realm. Once they had all turned their attention back to any one of the multiple discussions at play, Hubert fought for air and then exhaled forcefully, trying to contain himself as he felt one of Byleth’s feet trace lazily down the front of his boot and come to rest gently on the top of his foot. It took all his concentration to kill a blush from spreading over his face - though, unbeknownst to him, his ears began flushing a _very_ telling shade of maroon - and to ignore an agonizing coilling sensation from stirring somewhere deep in his core.

He tried to focus on the conversation at hand - _he really did_ ! -, but her foot began to venture continually up his leg. He coughed to kill a moan from bursting forth out of his mouth as her foot ran over his knee and then, the moment she grazed his inner thigh, he felt himself losing control. He hastily gulped down the last of his drink and he then detangled himself from the table as her foot was heading even _higher_ up on his leg, immediately causing him to stand up and excuse himself from their company before anyone could ask a single question. He only just caught sight of Edelgard’s concerned frown and a terrible, heart-breaking look caught in Byleth’s eyes before he ran out of the room.

He felt like an absolute fool - goddess, if this was what it would be like living around her, he would have preferred death to a continued bought of this horrific game of emotions!

_It was far too much to bear!_

He hid just around the open doorway of the dining hall with his back to the wall, fighting to catch his breath and force his rebellious body under his control once again, but he still couldn't kill an unrelenting heat that was settling somewhere deep in his abdomen. He slowly slid downward until he was sitting on the cool, stone ground and he ran a hand through his hair as he gazed out over the lake, all at once realizing just how cursed he was - she _obviously_ still liked him.

Hubert had been struggling with his feelings for her for _years_ and now, after finally figuring himself out and deciding he would be happy to eternally entwine his life with Byleth, it was rather like the world had gone and turned on its side.

He couldn't make sense of anything that had just occurred. 

But, right now, that didn’t matter - this wasn’t about him. Hell, this wasn’t even about him _and_ her together. It was about Edelgard and the rest of the Black Eagles Strike Force and the Adrestian Empire and winning the war and…

"Hubes, are you ok?" The short girl with the bushy green hair rounded the doorway and looked down at him with the greatest sense of alarm, flashing him those deep emerald eyes of hers that always set his body acting in ways he couldn't repress and Hubert groaned internally.

_Of course, it couldn’t be anyone else… it just had to be her._

"I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have done that - I definitely overstepped my boundaries!" She began, her voice sounding sharp and tight, like a string that had been pulled too taut and was ready to snap. "I don't know why I even did that, but you looked so angry and so lost in thought back in there, that I -"

Hubert quickly put a finger to his lips, as to quiet her from continuing to shout so loudly and potentially draw concern from the others. She obeyed at once and snapped her mouth shut, giving him a heart-wrenching look that had his guts squirming around like a thousand of live, angry snakes, all the while. 

_This wasn't going to be easy - but nothing was ever easy with her._

The mage sighed before he scooted himself over, further away from the entrance to the dining hall, and he patted the ground at his side, wordlessly offering her a place to sit. Byleth elegantly dropped to the ground to his right, her eyes blazing into his own, obviously hungry for answers.

"Professor, please. Don't worry, I'm not mad at you," he spoke calmly despite her agitated gaze penetrating straight through him. He stared at her briefly, analyzing her every edge and curve and the world seemed to move like a slow pouring liquid as he watched her, which he could assume was yet another hint of a slight buzz hitting him as his mind had gone all fuzzy at the edges. "Please settle down."

"But… No! You _should_ be mad at me!" She whispered harshly at him. "I had no right of doing anything that would make you so - so uncomfortable, as I did! Goddess above, I barely knew why I even did that, but I _needed_ to touch you and know you were _real_ and right _there_ in front of me and - oh, still! That’s not any sort of excuse - my behavior was reprehensible! I can’t believe I was so forward and uncouth and ‐ !"

Hubert turned to her, taking one of her hands in his own, a surefire way to silence her at once.

"It's alright - I understand. This is a rather... confusing time for all of us,” the mage said and she smiled weakly up to him. Noticing the girl had begun to settle, he tried to drop his hand from her hold, but was surprised to find his hand was instead still holding fast onto her. He carefully searched her gaze, wondering what it was about her that made his own body disobey his commands and he unwillingly found his answer as she squeezed his hand and an odd fluttering sensation took over his chest.

"You’re not wrong. This is all so bizarre… To me, it was just like taking a nap," she muttered. "One instant you were all there and then next, I woke up all alone. Nothing at all changed for me, besides being blessed with this _horrid_ hair color and all… Then, here you guys are, all grown up and mature and so totally changed these five years later, and I can't help but wonder what I missed when you lot were off adventuring all this time, while I… I feel such a void in me as I see all of you, now. It hurts me so much that I wasn’t a part of your lives and that I missed out on so much and I -"

"Professor -," Hubert interjected.

"Byleth," the mercenary replied, matter of factly. "Please call me 'Byleth.' There's no need for such formalities at this point, especially when you’re now even older than me, you fool."

Hubert bit down sharply on his tongue to stop too large a smile from blooming on his face, but it was already too late. "Alright, then, _Byleth,_ please put your mind at rest. You didn't miss anything drastically life changing. Honestly, nothing has been so important as _you_ coming back to us today. The rest we can easily catch you up on, in no time at all."

 _Oh, goddess, there was that smile again and, oh, how he’d missed it!_ Hubert felt his chest swell for her and her alone in that moment. He was beyond certain he would personally fell cities just for another chance to see that beautiful smile grace her lips.

“You’re such a liar,” she sneered playfully at him. “But, I’ll take the compliment just the same.”

“Fine, if that’s how you’re going to be, how’s this? I can’t speak for everyone else, but in my high opinion alone, nothing could possibly rival just how special today has been.” He tenderly rubbed his thumbs over her knuckles, his hazy mind wanted nothing more than to rip off his gloves with his teeth and feel her soft, supple skin against his own. “I’ve missed you so much - more so than I fear I could ever say.”

“Well?” She had risen slightly off of the ground onto her knees so that the two were face to face. Hubert’s heart stuttered as she leaned in towards him. “Why don’t you try?”

“Try what, exactly?” He gulped, his voice cracking like a nervous teenager as she took a gentle hold of his hands.

“To tell you how much you missed me,” she whispered. “Hubert, please - I _need_ to know that it's not just me."

“Byleth… My dear, sweet Byleth,” he began, his voice was thick with anxiety as he broke his hands from hers and cupped his trembling hands around the mercenary’s blushing face. “I missed you so much more than I can ever explain.”

“How much so, Hubes?” She playfully egged him on, her breath quickening as they grew ever closer. “Tell me, _please_ …”

“So, so, _so_ much more than I could ever possibly say, but _perhaps_ I could find another… manner to express my feelings, you utterly challenging girl," he sighed, their noses practically touching as Hubert struggled to take in one last deep breath of air before pressing his lips tenderly against her own.

Byleth froze for a moment, as if she had been taken aback by Hubert initiating something as intimate as a kiss. He was about to pull away from her and apologize until the day came to a bloody end for misreading her so poorly but, all at once, she came roaring back to life and pressed into him, sighing contentedly as they both gave in to the heat of the moment.

It began gently enough, but whatever untamed fires the two had hid within themselves of their attraction for one another, the heated moment suddenly blazed to life after another second of their unexpected contact. Byleth cried out before diving into the mage’s lap, eliciting a strained moan from him as she forced his back against the brick wall and her hands dug through his short hair, pulling his bangs away from covering his sharp, attractive features. Hubert was spurred on by her actions and his hands drifted from the mercenary’s face and down along her back where he gripped posessively onto her, forcing her body against his own, needing not a single word to tell her that he would never let her go.

Their kisses slowly became more demanding and more frantic and harder against one another as they chased a chaotic and long overdue high that had lingered over them both since that day long, long ago where the silly professor had once offered her oddball student a sad, damaged box of chocolates.

They were reaching a boiling point as Byleth pressed her tongue deep and suddenly into his mouth - earning an impressed groan from Hubert as he welcomed the action - and the mage flung off his gloves, slowly tracing his bare hands down along the girl’s exposed midriff and hiking her blouse up so that his bare hands to could casually trail up her torso, following her ribcage and then -

It was in that hectic moment of rushing adrenaline and pitched emotions that Hubert accidentally bit sharply down onto Byleth’s tongue. She yelped loudly and drew away from him, more so in shock than anything, and a crass commotion broke out in the dining hall, freezing the two in place as they registered what chain of events they had unintentionally set off.

“Did anyone else hear that?” 

“I am to be thinking that had been an injured animal!”

“ _NO WAY!!_ That was a freaking person!”

“Quick, someone go check outside!”

With a shared horrified look at one another, Byleth leapt out of Hubert’s lap and she took his outstretched hand, easily pulling him upright, though he briefly stumbled into her as they came up with some sort of quick escape plan. Byleth pointed at the staircase and, before he could even so much as nod, she dragged him behind her and they swiftly raced down the flight of steps leading towards the lake, both taking multiple steps at a time in their sudden descent. The mercenary was about to make a sprint for the greenhouse after they hit ground level, but Hubert latched around one of her arms and he swung her about so that they both ended up with their backs to the base of the wall, keeping them both thankfully out of sight of the Black Eagles as the group flew out of the dining hall and onto the landing.

Byleth ducked out of Hubert’s grasp and watched the group with keen eyes from around the corner as they all came stumbling out, one after another. Hubert - who was uninterested in letting them get caught in what could barely even be called any sort of sordid ‘affair,’ after being cut so miserably short - tugged the mercenary backwards and pulled her into his arms, trapping her there as he pressed himself close against the wall, while Edelgard and the others searched the immediate area. It seemed like it took them forever to realize nothing had happened, but the group slowly calmed and, after expressing their disappointment and concerns, they began to file back into the building, not willing to give up their rare chance at a good, warm feast for chasing some beast or random person who might have made a suspicious sound on a wild goose chase. After another moment, Hubert signaled to Byleth to look around the corner to see if they were clear and the mercenary nodded, ducking low toward the ground before peeking back out at the scene.

It took her a moment to figure out what she was seeing in the dark light of dusk, but once she did, Byleth gaped in absolute horror at the lone figure who was standing at the top of the stairs and gazing out at their surroundings, looking for anything that stood out among the evening’s long shadows - it was Edelgard and she was holding Hubert’s white gloves _in her hand._

A chill flew through Byleth’s form and she unintentionally jolted backwards into Hubert, a scream nearly peeling out of her throat as she realized they might have been caught. As if he already knew she was about to make a sound, Hubert covered Byleth’s mouth with the palm of his hand and he held tightly onto her as they waited… and waited… and waited… until the telltale _‘click-clacks’_ of Edelgard’s heels retreated into the dining hall.

“What happened?” Hubert whispered, gently releasing his hands from Byleth, still listening intently to the hall above to ensure they were out of harm’s way.

Byleth covered her mouth, her face blanching in terror. “Hubes, she… she had your gloves.”

“What?!” The mage hissed, dark energy crackling to life around him as he glanced down at his bare hands, wondering how he could have possibly neglected to snatch up clear evidence of his personal involvement in that bizarre affair. “How did she -?”

“I… I don’t know.” Byleth’s hands were shaking as she gently took hold of him, lowering his hands and forcing his magic to abate at the same time. “It’s no use getting too worked up about this, I mean, it’s not like we made it obvious what we had… It’s just your gloves, after all!”

Hubert groaned in frustration. “You’re right, I’m sure you’re right, but I can’t help fearing she’s put it together or _will_ put it together somehow."

“Ok, ok, ok,” Byleth tapped her fist to her forehead, in her trademarked manner of thinking up any one of her off-the-wall schemes. “You left in a hurry and I went out after you, right? Ok, why don’t I just tell them that you were acting a bit odd - maybe that you were overwhelmed by me having come back? - and I was concerned, so I ran off after you and saw you back to your room. We can leave the gloves out of the story, maybe El will just assume it happened when you rushed out of here? And, now I guess I don't have any real choice but to go rejoin the others because… Well, because we definitely can’t avoid this now.” She looked up to him in despair. “I’ll let them know you’re alright and I'll put on a shocked face in case they bring anything of this up. It’s not one of my better plans altogether, but I’m sure no one will really ask questions. What do you think?”

Hubert nodded his head as he thought through everything, barely able to focus on anything but the aching pounding of his heart and the heavy layer of fog lingering thickly around his brain. “Yeah, sure, I wasn’t feeling well and... Alright, yeah, that’s fine. Let’s go with that.”

“But I -,” the mercenary sighed and rubbed the back of her head, glancing sadly toward the dining hall. She slowly passed her attention back to Hubert and carefully took hold of his hands, almost as if she was afraid their old classmates would come rushing back again and finding them in such a telling position. “Hubes, I… I don’t want to leave you. I really don’t.”

Hubert nodded at her, unable to bring himself to say just how much he didn't want to part from her either, though he knew they would have to separate for the night in order to clear themselves as suspects from the other Black Eagles. “I know, I know. But, for now, we must go our own ways.”

“Yeah,” she agreed with a huff. “But we _need_ to meet up and talk about this - I mean, about _us_ \- sooner than later, alright?”

With a deep bow, Hubert took her hands, one at a time, and pressed a chaste kiss to her knuckles. “Of course. I would love nothing more than that, my dear.”

Byleth sniffled and threw herself into him, causing Hubert to cough as she squeezed desperately onto him. He stood there awkwardly for a moment before embracing her back and returning her loving embrace in his own manner.

“Ok. Go ahead and turn in for the night, I’ll go take care of these guys," she said as she reluctantly parted from him.

“Will do," he affirmed casually, doing his best to force a cap on his emotions and keep from allowing Byleth to see how distraught he was actually feeling.

"Oh, wait just a moment!" Byleth called out, halting him in his place, and she reached into her pocket for a handkerchief. Hubert raised his eyebrow at her but, undeterred, she moved forwards and pressed against him as she gently dabbed at his cheeks and lips.

"What - what are you doing?" He cried out, his face suddenly flushing as she doted on him, one of her hands cupping his chin and turning his face, as a sweet and almost fruit-like smell drifted off her cloth and clung onto him while she busied herself in wiping away at his face.

"Sorry, I realized I got some of my lipstick on you," she muttered while she finished her work. Turning his chin back and forth in her hand to look over his face, Byleth passed him a tenderhearted smile. "Good. You look perfect, Hubert."

He could only nod, his pulse pounding in his ears as a deep blush continued to dust his gaunt cheeks. "Uh, yes… Thank you."

The mercenary's smile faded as she glanced back at the dining hall. “Guess it's showtime. I’ll see you soon, Hubes," she muttered, giving him a gentle squeeze to one of his hands before she began walking away from him - leaving him alone, once again.

"Of course," he called after her, trying not to sound as pathetic as his withered heart would have had him doing so. "I’ll be looking forward to our next meeting."

She turned and waved to him before climbing the steps and heading off to deal with Edelgard and the others.

Hubert watched her vanish from view and dip into the dining hall before he even considered moving from his spot. It took all his strength to force his feet onward and make his way up to the second floor of the dormitories.

It wasn’t until he locked himself in his room that he finally was hit with an overwhelming wave of emotions. He let out a cry of misery and he slumped to the floor with his back leaning against the door, barely able to contain his heart from hammering out of his ribcage.

Hubert covered his face with his bare, trembling hands as each fresh painful feeling passed through his mind, suddenly becoming more distraught in realizing he had already come to grips with her assumed death five long years ago, making this touching reunion that more poignant in his weakened heart.

As he drew his hands away from his face, he gasped for air and caught a whiff of that fruity scent once again. He hissed out every curse he could conceive while his thoughts circled relentlessly around one particular green-haired mercenary.

This was going to be impossible. There was no way he would be able to keep himself from he after all of that.

_Goddess above, I need her now._

* * *

In the following three days, the group continued celebrating with this same level of merriment until the reality of life came back to them all, hitting each one of them in a different, but equally agonizing manner.

Edelgard had much to do and spent more and more of each day locked up in her war room, only inviting Hubert, Byleth and Ferdinand in at certain times while she busied herself in strategizing their upcoming battles and potential attack plans. Byleth spent a good amount of time alongside Edelgard, who so desperately needed to be grounded and have a steady source of support from someone she believed so deeply in, as before. Hubert, in the meantime, had found himself drowning in paperwork and a million different types of documents that he had pushed to the side while everyone - the mage included - was consumed in celebrating Byleth’s return.

Unfortunately so, a lot of his work was time sensitive so, despite his urge to toss everything out of his window and watch the cool breeze sweep his worries away into the horizon before running off to reunite with his beloved, he had no choice but to submit to his duties. He could not procrastinate his workload any longer.

Nevertheless, somehow keeping out of contact with the green-haired mercenary was harder in three days than it had been in the five years since they had been driven apart.

Still, despite his heartache, it wouldn't due to allow his mind to dwell on his old professor. Thinking on her, those deep, all-seeing eyes and her voluptuous, sinful form only hindered his work and caused him to break out in… other uncomfortable physical reactions that he'd rather not think too hard about, lest he'd be giving into his baser instincts altogether.

The success of the Empire weighed heavily on his shoulders, alone. He had mountains of work he needed to complete including assassinations to arrange, treaties to ratify, and other immeasurably important legal details to respond to, so he couldn't put off his duties any longer. As a matter of fact, he was the first of the Black Eagles to lock himself away and give in to his work, spending each day - early morning through late night - with a pot or three of coffee, all while focused on his personal work and then providing his spare time in Edelgard’s company, assisting her in anyway that she saw fit.

Everything was working out rather well - considering the fact that Hubert was slowly dying each day without crossing Byleth in some shape or form - that was due alone to the fact that, for whatever reason, Edelgard never seemed to require both him and Byleth to be in her war room at once. The green-haired mercenary had been just as busy as he, jumping from place to place and lending a hand to all of her old students in their multitude of never ending personal and war-related problems. It was just sheer _cruel_ luck that even Edelgard was keeping them separated, too.

But, in all fairness, Byleth and Hubert, in their individual councils to the Emperor, seemed to be thinking very much along the same lines. Though they were not intentionally doing so, together they were leading Edelgard on a steady and sure path. The certainty and calmness of her Majesty was refreshing now that her two most trustworthy aides were again at her side. Hubert couldn't help himself but reminisce on old times when Edelgard and he were Byleth's students, but now everything was on such a larger and much more stressful scale.

Yet, even with so much going on, Hubert's treacherous, weak heart was starving for more contact with Byleth. He kept himself busy and more invested in his workload than ever before, in spite of himself. Of course, when it came down to it, he hadn't been intentionally avoiding the girl with his paperwork as a feeble excuse - _that would be childish and downright foolish, after all_! - but the ebb and flow of his busy days kept him in constant motion until the early morning hours when he would finally turn in, only to force himself out of bed a few sleepless hours later and start the cycle all over again. Beyond hearing his comrades chattering away nonstop about the damned girl, so far Hubert hadn’t seen hide or green head of her since the day she returned to the monastery and, though he wouldn't admit the truth, it was slowly devouring him from the inside out.

Beyond his detestable and uncontrollable emotions, his sleep schedule was affected most drastically. Back even before his student days at the officer's academy, the dark mage had struggled with sleep for many years, having horrific nightmares and a long-standing case of insomnia to blame. Since Byleth had vanished, it had all gotten so much worse. The last few months in particular had been so restless and so hectic that simply closing his eyes and occasionally drifting off for a few odd minutes at a time had been what he gladly settled for.

It was better than getting no sleep at all, he figured.

Regardless, another part of his troubles was that there was now a strange longing he felt deep in his soul that was causing him additional suffering, and he knew it immediately to be due to Byleth returning into his life. It wasn’t until they had lost her and feared their professor dead that Hubert had come to grips with the all too powerful emotions he had always attributed to being around his professor and he despised himself for not having allowed anything more to come of their encounter during the Feast of the Saints they spent bickering in the woods.

_Ah, to imagine what could have been…_

After the battle when everything changed, Hubert had watched his team slowly deteriorate and it took a good period of time for everyone to pull themselves together and back to a rough simile of their old selves. Regardless of own despondency at the loss of Byleth, he refused to allow his team to see how torn up he was while everyone was in such dire straits. He only spoke with Edelgard a few times in order to help control his overrun feelings - stating he was only that miserable because he hated seeing her Majesty in such sorrow - and, though she surely knew of his _true_ feelings longer than she would ever dare let on, Hubert eventually gave in and told her plainly that their professor had captured his heart. Though desperately infatuated with their professor in another almost obsessive manner, Edelgard understood his sorrow and the two were able to mourn in their shared loss together.

But, now that Byleth had come back into their lives while Edelgard had been struggling so severely, Hubert wasn’t very comfortable with the idea of bringing his feelings back up to light and he realized he had no real choice but to suffocate his own emotions and do the best he could to keep it all under control on his own. Yet, it seemed as though he couldn’t do enough to keep his feelings in check, especially when he rolled over in his bed late at night - so late, in fact, that most people would call it _morning_ \- and he had this persisting ache that kept him up with millions of questions and thoughts on how to fill this deep void within his heart or stop these constant thoughts about her from taking over his mind.

Not like fighting in a terrible war wasn’t enough - Hubert felt like he was stuck all on his own island and he was completely losing his mind while this miserable, painful heat was busy permanently stoking away inside his gut.

He had to figure out a solution to his misery before it would be too late and he would do something he would _dearly_ regret.

* * *

Hubert rubbed at his aching eyes as he set another stack of files off to the far side of his desk and out of his way. He had made significant headway in his work, but he still had a few more documents to read through before turning in for the night.

Suddenly noticing a sharp pain in his wrist, he set his quill down and rotated his left hand, eliciting a number of cracks from his sore joint as he tried to shake off the worst of his pain. He reached for his coffee cup with his pen hand and pressed the mug to his lips before remembering that he had drained the last of his drink a little bit ago. With an annoyed grunt, he set the cup down and stretched his arms above his head, causing small tremmors to wrack through his body as he did so. As his pain subsided, he glanced briefly out of the window before focusing back on those last few documents, that is, before he snapped his attention back to the window again.

It was dark outside - it was a very bleak, familiar shade of the late night sky.

_Just how long had he been at his desk working through these documents?_

He glanced around his room, his stomach sinking as it occurred to him that he had wasted away the day in his own personal paperwork themed hell. It was the middle of the day when he had started sometime just after he broke for a quick lunch, but now, he realized, the sun had set long ago and was probably due to rise in another few hours or so.

Hubert dropped his head onto his desk as it occurred to him that Edelgard had requested that Byleth, Ferdinand and he join her for breakfast to go over some important deals with a movement their troops would shortly be taking.

_Would it even be worth trying to fall asleep at this point at all?_

Not only did he want to be on his best behavior for his darling Byleth, but he also had to have relative clarity to be fully disposed to her Majesty as they came up with a final plan before sending off a good number of men to die for making some kind of terrible, sleep-deprived mistake.

Still, there was so much to do before the morning arrived and nowhere near enough time to do it in.

Hubert hated leaving unfinished work at the end of the day, but he had to admit that it was a fairly good idea that he should give up and get to sleep for the night. Before he could make a decision either way, a deep growl emanated from his stomach and he bent over in sudden pain, all at once regretting the very small open faced liverwurst and cucumber sandwich he had consumed at lunch and the three pots of dark coffee he had downed during the day. He was _starving_ and there was no way he’d be able to sleep while feeling this hungry, he admitted angrily to himself.

Hubert cursed weakly as he rose to his bare feet and forced himself into his nearest pair of boots. He had been wearing clothes that were primarily for comfort as he blazed through his paperwork during the day and he saw absolutely no reason why he would have to change before stalking off into the night in search of food. He looked like a disaster, but what did he care? After all, knowing his teammates, there was such a small chance that he would even run into any of them at this odd, early hour of the day. So, after blowing out the lantern at his desk and quietly shutting his door closed, as not to disturb Edelgard next door, he slunk off on his way to the dining hall.

All the way on his little excursion, Hubert was running on autopilot. Not a thought passed through his mind as he took down the staircase and sped across the courtyard to the dining hall. He was far more tired than he was willing to admit, and paired with the fact that he was aching miserably all over from being hunched over his desk all day long, it was a terrible combination to deal with at once. His single most thought was of his stomach while he climbed the staircase to the dining hall.

When he reached the top landing, he was immediately broken away from his sleepy mindset and it occurred to him just how odd it was that it smelled like meat was being cooked, even at this unholy hour of the night.

His blood went cold as he then realized the hall was lit from the _inside_. It wasn't bright, but there had to be someone in there.

Hubert had made it his business to track and know his companions' habits better than even the back of his hand and he immediately knew that this was highly unusual behavior. He could only hope it was a rare chance of someone else being struck with a sleepless night, but even then he knew he wasn't kidding himself. His hair stood on end and his blood curdled as a vile chill bit through his veins. Everything about the situation had him instantly set on red alert, though there was nothing truly or inherently evil about someone preparing food in the dark of the night.

Still, the dark mage carefully prowled around the doorway and into the building, his heart shuddering to a stop as he barely discerned the shape of someone by the cooking equipment in the dim lighting - a single someone who had turned around completely and was staring blankly in his direction. Hubert froze in horror as the other person glared directly at him, both stuck in some odd kind of stand off. He flexed his hands and concentrated dark energy at his palms - his left hand throbbed horrifically as he did so, making him wonder just how he managed to hurt his hand so badly just by writing _alone_ -, preparing to duel with the intruder and send a blast of miasma racing straight at their face, as they otherwise stood completely unmoving, staring emotionlessly back at him.

But, all at once, the other person turned away from him and the tense moment ended.

As if they were a member of the undead, when the person swung their body around, their limbs hung loose and heavy at their sides. Hubert reared back and prepared to strike, but they went back to focusing on a pan they held over a small fire, somehow as if they never Hubert noticed in the first place, at all.

Meanwhile, the mage nearly heaved in relief - suddenly feeling grateful that he had nothing in his gut to puke out -, his nerves shot alone at the uncanny movements and gestures the figure at the front of the room was making.

_What the hell was going on?!_

Despite his disinterest to get into a fight while feeling so weak, Hubert’s hands still hummed with the full extent of his power while he approached the person, preparing to hit this creature with the most deadly accuracy they would ever know. He carefully raised his hand, just about ready to let loose with his first strike, when his eyes fully adjusted to the dark room, lit by only two candles besides the human-like blob, and his power immediately died away. He could only stare in disbelief at the person he found cooking robotically behind the kitchen counter, because it was the absolute last person he expected to have found there.

“Byleth?" He muttered quietly, almost afraid of catching her attention. "What on Fódlan are you doing up?”

The girl shuddered fiercely before turning his direction with her hand clutching at her chest. " _Hubert_? Oh, good goddess, is that really you? You spooked me! I thought you were another one of those shadow beasts!"

He stared at her in bafflement - she looked nothing like her normal self. True, he hadn't seen her in three days, but he could never recall a time she looked this unwell. Byleth's face was an uncanny shade of ghastly white and she had the deepest, darkest bags under her eyes that he had ever seen on another human being - besides himself, he even admitted. Her hair looked like it had it's normal volume defeated and it clung sadly to her head and shoulders, making her look almost like an animal with mange. She wore a long baggy shirt that did nothing but dwarf her frame and make her look all that much more ill. His breath shuddered as he reached out to her, scared of making contact with her sickly skin, but he still continued and pushed a stray bunch of hair out from obstructing her face. She hummed happily as his knuckles skimmed over her cheek and he slowly reclaimed his hand.

"'Shadow beasts?' Is that why you stared like that at me as I walked in the room?" He glanced to her and took notice that her usually sharp, dark eyes seemed almost blurry and unfocused as she gazed his way. "Well, no, it's just me. And, more importantly, my dear, you… you don't look well. Why are you still awake at this hour?"

She rubbed at her eyes, obviously fighting a yawn as she did so. "Couldn't sleep. So, I did the next best thing."

He gazed around the room, only then taking note of the line of bowls set up against the nearest wall where a few cats were busy enjoying their little meals that Byleth had prepared for them. "You plan to feed the entirety of the cat population of Garegg Mach?" He questioned carefully.

"Yeah," Byleth nodded slowly, her head bobbing weakly, even as she tried to stop the motion entirely. "There are a lot less cats here than I remembered… I wanted to make sure these few that remained were taken care of."

Hubert rubbed at her back, genuinely admiring her selflessness, even while she was trapped in such a weakened state. "Your heart is in the right place, darling."

"Thank you," she smiled, he frowned while noticing how sad and flimsy it appeared on her poor face, looking not at all like her normal proud and confident self. 

"How long have you been up?" He questioned gently. "You mentioned seeing shadow things… have you been hallucinating? You're making me worried, you foolish girl."

"I haven't closed my eyes since I came back," she chirped almost proudly, turning back around to the fish she was frying away in her pan. He frowned again and watched her, she could barely keep herself still as she worked.

 _Had her hands been shaking that badly since he'd walked in the room_?

"And now," she grinned. "I've decided that I'm never, ever going to sleep ever, ever again."

"Byleth," Hubert hissed sternly. He glared at her and she pointedly avoided looking back at him, almost as if she could feel the heat of his glare alone. "That's just stupid and you know it! You need sleep, or else you'll completely fall apart.

"This is a time of _war_ , Byleth, you need good sleep and quality food when you can get it." His eyes wandered back to the number of bowls lining the wall. "And, though you have good intentions, you should be careful not to waste our resources, lest you leave one of our comrades hunger in their stead."

Byleth's body shook as she released a weary sigh. "You - you're right! Goddess, must think I'm terribly stupid."

"No, no, not at all," he replied tenderly. "You have a big heart - that's nothing to be ashamed of. But, you _do_ need sleep and you need it _now_."

She shook her head angrily in response. "No, I don't need sleep - or I shouldn't! After all, I was asleep for five whole years, Hubert! I need to live! I can't waste anymore time resting my eyes, don't you understand?"

He watched her intently as she poked at the browning fish, tears bubbling at the corners of her eyes, still refusing to return his gaze.

"You're… afraid, aren't you?" He asked, sounding ever so soft and careful as he tried to push past her defenses.

"Afraid of what?" She spat hastily.

"You… you're afraid it'll happen again," he continued, his voice quiet and timid as she met his gaze. "That you'll fall asleep for some ungodly amount of time and miss all of us growing even older, isn't that right?"

"I -," she began, her throat clenching as she fought back the tears that were threatening to spill from her eyes. "Hubert, I -"

"It's ok," The mage opened his arms to her and took ahold of her shoulders. "I know, because I've been worried about the possibility that it could happen again, too." He moved even closer to her, his voice dropping to a whisper as he spoke, " _I couldn't bear myself if anything ever took you away from me._ "

In one fluid motion, the girl dropped her spatula in the pan and she fell into Hubert's awaiting arms. She slowly broke down into a mournful sob, at once coming to grips with the truth she had been avoiding since she had awoken from her deep, deep slumber. Hubert lovingly hushed at her, gently trying to calm her, and he nestled his face into the top of her head, deeply breathing her in as he encased her closer in his hold. His throat tightened with each of his strangled breaths, slowly realizing just how sorely he had missed Byleth in the past few days alone.

"I can't -!" She cried harshly as she buried her face into the crook of his neck. "Hubert, I can't risk this happening again! I - I can't let you and - and everyone! I - _I can't_ -!"

"Shh," Hubert stroked at her back, tracing his long fingers over her spine as he did so. "It's ok, darling, it's ok… I understand. But, I promise you that it won't happen again, I swear that to you, Byleth."

"How can you make a promise like that?" She sobbed, pulling sharply away from him. "You and I both have no control over this! Who's to say it couldn't happen tomorrow or in five days or in another five years? This is no way to live in fear of sleeping - I'd rather just be dead!"

"Stop talking that way," he spoke, his voice sounding incredibly serious as he clenched his hands on her upper arms, stalling her in place. "You don't know that either! There's no reason to get yourself so heated up over something that may never happen!"

"But _what if?_ What if it does happen? I can't live with myself if I fell asleep again!" She rubbed her trembling hands over his slanting cheek. "Hubert, I can't live with myself knowing that _you'll_ grow on without me!"

His heart froze and he lost his breath for a moment, having been sent reeling from her comment. "I - Byleth…" he stuttered, before wrapping himself around her, his hands splaying out before gripping onto her as tightly as he could.

She choked on her sobs, happily burying her face into his shirt all the while. Hubert pressed a few chaste kisses to the crown of her mint green head and cursed under his breath for bearing witness to the poor girl falling into such a sad state.

"If - _if!_ \- something as atrocious as that were to happen," he mumbled easily against her ear. "I'd put myself into a magical sleep besides you and we'll rest and awake together as one."

She leaned slightly away from him, tears streaming down her pale cheeks. "Is that… is that even possible?" She sniffled.

"If it isn't, I'll find a way to make it happen, my dear," he grinned wolfishly and pulled her back into his arms. "One way or another, I _will."_ He slowly pressed a kiss to her forehead. "But, that is a worry for another night, dear girl! Now, it's time this vile man sweep you off your feet and force you to rest!"

"Oh, alright… But wait!!" She called out suddenly, rubbing at her wet cheeks as she dove at the stove. "The fish! I almost forgot!!"

She snatched the frying pan off of the stove and quickly extinguished it's small flame before gazing into the pan in pity. One rather large and unfortunately burned fish sat in it's buttery grave.

"I killed it," she mumbled. "No cat would dare eat anything so ruined."

"Good thing, too," Hubert quickly plucked up the fish between two of his fingers and took a quick bite of it. "I'm no cat, but this is perfect to my taste," he spoke between bites until the fish was all gone, finally satiating his burning hunger. "That better?"

"Much," Byleth grinned at him, her face lighting a pale shade of crimson as she tucked herself under his arm. "Still, you should know, I really don't want to sleep, Hubes."

"Not to worry," he replied matter of factly before blowing out the two candles and then leading her away. "I have an idea, my dear, a little something that may help you," he let his words linger as they strolled out into the night.

"Yes?" She pressed all too eagerly. "And what's that?"

He pulled her close against his side. "You're coming with me to _my_ room for the night."

She could only yelp out in shock, her face practically glowing red in the moonlight, as the dark mage stole her away with him to the upper floors of the dormitories.

* * *

"What are you planning?" Byleth cautiously ask as Hubert pulled the door to his room shut behind her. He re-lit the lantern at his desk and Byleth blinked slowly in the bright light.

"Nothing too much or too uncomfortable, I promise you," Hubert glanced wryly her way before kicking off his boots and moving them to the wall beside the door. "You are aware that I watched over Lady Edelgard since she was very young, right?"

"Yes," she responded, wondering where this line of thought was leading to. "And?"

" _And_ ," he continued with a smirk as the girl cautiously removed her own shoes and set them beside his. "She faced numerous horrors in her youth. There were many nights she spent sleepless until I learned how to soothe her, which is exactly what I intend to do with you." He picked up the last few documents he needed to review that were sitting on his desk before he sat down on his bed, setting the lantern on the window ledge above his head. She watched him blankly as he propped up back with a number of pillows and he casually gestured at the empty space to his side. "Come on, then!"

She fiddled awkwardly with her fingers, heat rising in her face as she realized this would be the first time she would ever be sharing a bed with a man - even though it wasn't in any sort of sexual manner, the thought alone had her quaking at her knees. "I, uh, don't know how comfortable I am with this," she stuttered quietly.

Hubert laughed as he looked her up and down. "Dear girl, we had gotten _quite_ intimate the other day, but now you're scared? I'm just shocked! But truthfully, I'm going out of my way to _help_ you, you are aware of that, right? I promise," he raised his hands in innocence. "I won't do anything odd to you, you have my word! Plus, I have work I need to complete and you stalling this right now is doing no favors to me, Lady Edelgard or her Empire, so…"

Byleth hung her head in shame and approached his bed, haltingly sitting at the edge of the mattress, where she sat motionless for too long for Hubert's taste. The mage's hands gently grabbed onto her waist and he dragged her backwards and up against himself.

"Hubes!" She cried out as her back hit into his chest. "Don't you think you're being a _bit_ too forward?!" 

He chuckled darkly into her ear. "Oh, darling, I don't think I could be forward _enough_ in my intentions toward you, but right now, that is _not_ what this is about."

She glanced up to him, her pulse racing wildly as he leaned down to her. "Take your mind out of the gutter - _this_ , dear girl, is only about getting you to sleep."

He then pulled back and rested himself at the head of the bed arranging his paperwork to his right side as Byleth sat uncomfortably to his left.

"Now what?" She squeaked and he sighed, feeling all too fatigued to deal with her in this prudish manner.

"Now, lie back," he suggested, though she remained there as stiff as a board. Hubert chuckled before his hands found her shoulders once more and he lowered her against him until she was lying on his chest, with her arms tightly lodged at her side. "And _relax._ "

"I don't see how this is supposed to help," she mumbled into his shirt, her face blazing hot as he pulled his blankets up over their bodies and he wrapped an arm over her shoulders.

"It helps because sometimes lying besides another is enough to put one's mind at rest. Then, for your specific problem, I'm willing to offer you my service by forcing you awake one way or the other, come tomorrow morning," he felt emboldened by his recent contact with the mercenary and he bent down to her and pressed another kiss to her forehead. "In the meantime, why don't you take a deep breath, relax, and _sleep_ , you challenging fiend, you!"

Byleth shuffled uncomfortably, her own body feeling foreign to her as one of her arms bravely curled around his back and the other rested on his chest besides her face. Hubert cleared his throat and reclined fully, his heart leaping to his throat as he felt her hands flexing and gripping onto him. Her eyes slowly closed as she listened to the mage pulled deep, even breathes into his lithe body. She groaned weakly as she adjusted against closer him and he began organizing through his documents, slowly picking up his work once again, despite the girl becoming so maddening close to his own body that it was raising a flush over his face. Eventually, his foolish fever died down and he could focus on his paperwork in full.

The two were lying there beside each other in the relative dark of his room for a time, until Byleth groaned and pulled away from him.

"This isn't working," she grumbled, her voice giving away to her overwhelming fatigue as a yawn tumbled out from her lips. "I'm still awake, Hubes…"

"Alright, then," he answered calmly, trying not to give in to a yawn himself as he set his papers to his side. "I have one last idea that always got El to sleep."

"And that is?" She glanced up to him and he grinned back at her, his fingers slowly making their way through her wiry hair. She jolted upright at the unexpected contact, but she slowly fell down against him as he stroked her head.

"Oh, I like that," she moaned weakly as he continued the soothing motion and he steadily let an old tune - one which he had long since forgotten - echo out from his chest and fill the silence of the room.

Byleth slowly shuffled herself around, her body pressing tightly against the mage's as she wound her legs between his. Hubert continued humming his song, the same which had lulled Edelgard to sleep on the worst nights of her childhood, and he swiftly forgot all about his paperwork. He casually brushed his papers to his side and easily lost himself in the melody of his tune and the repetitive motion of his hand running through the lengths of the mercenary's mint green hair. With each stroke, that refreshing, tart fruity smell was released from her hair and Hubert found himself being taken hostage by the same unrelenting fatigue that had captured Byleth some time ago, as well.

Before he drifted away entirely, Hubert took Byleth's hand from his chest in his own and he intertwined his fingers with hers, never having found more peace in his life in that moment than ever before. He let out a single weary groan before his eyes fluttered to a close and he succumbed to a deep sleep that he had been avoiding for all too long.

Nothing had ever felt so right as they both slumped together, snoring and slumbering deeply as the first rays of dawn peaked over the horizon, beginning the day fresh and anew.

* * *

Edelgard was up early that morning, earlier than normal even, and she busied herself with brushing and braiding her stark white hair, struggling to find a style that was casual, without being _too_ casual - she was their Emperor, after all, she had an image she needed to project! - before she set off for the day. As was her custom, after dressing and otherwise preparing herself, she left her room and knocked three times on Hubert's door, so that they could set off to have breakfast together. But, what was not customary was that she received no response and found herself waiting foolishly alone at his unmoving door, standing awkwardly in the hallway, flattening out the wrinkles of her dress as she did so.

Finding an angry heat rising up her neck at being ignored so rudely by a man who she _knew_ to rarely - if ever! - sleep deeply at that, Edelgard knocked at the door once again, this time ensuring that as her fist met the door, the resonating sound would be enough to wake a corpse from its eternal rest. She then crossed her arms in front of her chest and waited, yet again, still receiving no reply. She began rolling up her sleeves as she realized this left her with no choice but to push his bedroom door open and drag the difficult man outside by his ear, if she really had to!

The Emperor stormed in before freezing a few steps into the room, staring in total, overwhelming surprise at what she had found. There, Hubert and Byleth were cuddled together under his covers, both wearing the most peaceful expressions she's ever seen on either of them, for that matter! They were both so out cold that her barging into their room didn't even cause either of them the slightest disturbance.

She stood there at a loss with her mouth opened at them wrapped up in each other's hold. Plain and simple, it was such a shock to see them both tangled together and sleeping soundly besides each other, even despite their unwelcomed intruder and the bright morning sun as it poured in through his windows, yet it was a blessed sight to the weary Emperor.

Though she had always adored their old professor and had even once considered asking for the older girl's hand in marriage, the Emperor had stepped back and chose not to push her luck in pursuing her crush, as there was just far too much else going on in the background of her life at that time, and even now, she unwillingly admitted. The Emperor had thought of potentially following through in her old plans now that Byleth had returned, but seeing her here now, wrapped tightly and contentedly in most trusted advisor's arms had her rethinking her motive.

But, it also stirred another thought in her mind, that blossomed into an excited grin at her lips.

Hubert's gloves from the other day - that had to have been something to do with the two of them, she was suddenly certain. What a fool she had been to never anticipate this having happened!

After all, she and Dorothea had pestered Hubert on the topic of marrying long ago before war broke out and the silly man had only agreed that he would commit to doing so if his marriage would assist her Majesty in some way shape or form. Since then, he continued to have strong neutral feels on the matter, that is, besides that one day, perhaps several weeks after the battle where Byleth had vanished. It was then that he had come to Edelgard, blushing and bumbling about some issue that was burning up his mind. After she broke past his usually stoic front, the dark mage broke down on her, admitting he had grown weak and had fallen for their late professor. The two had comforted each other in their time of loss and Edelgard realized at once, feeling rather guilty, that she had unintentionally forgotten about that miserable day quite some time ago.

Despite her own broken heart, she could see an honest to goddess smile stretched across the dark mage's face and her heart swelled in joy for him, knowing he must have finally made peace with his emotions for the professor.

The Emperor lowered her head in embarrassment and cracked a grin as she backed out of the room and slowly pulled the door shut, allowing the two to get some much needed rest - after all, it had been all too obvious the day before that the green-haired girl had been slacking on her sleep after nearly falling face first into her bowl of soup as the two ate lunch together the day before.

The Emperor closed her eyes and leaned back against the door, suddenly awash in a wave of sorrow for herself and happiness for her closest friend's situation.

_What a strange situation..._

"Your Majesty," a chipper voice - that could _only_ belong to one Ferdinand von Aegir - called out from her left, forcing a sudden prickling across her skin as he caught her unaware. "Good morning! And might I just comment on how lovely you look? Well, anyway, is it time for all of us to -"

"Ferdinand!" She dove away from the door and grinned all too eagerly at him, her odd actions silencing the redhead at once. Noticing the awkward pause building between them, she switched her focus, suddenly latching onto his sleeve and she began to drag him away. "Yes, yes, how about we go get something to eat?"

"Wait, your Majesty! What about Hubert and the Professor?" He asked, glancing back at the door to the dark mage's room. "We do not want to start our strategizing without them, of course!"

She waved dismissively at him as she pulled him down the corridor and towards the stairs. "You know what? How about you and I take care of business today? We'll fill them in sometime later."

Ferdinand shrugged, not at all sure what was going on, but completely happy to follow his Emperor at her slightest command. "Certainly! We can always meet with them before we send out the official orders and go from there, do you not agree?"

"Sure," she agreed casually, smiling back toward him as they continued on their way. "Let's give them both the day off in the meantime, I think they both _really_ need it."

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading!~ I only have one more chapter to go here but thanks for waiting on me while it's in the works!
> 
> & in the meantime, if you have any interest, feel free to hit me up on tumblr @bare-nok! I'm always up for a chat! :)


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